Famous Quotes & Sayings

You may not be aware of a recent survey that showed that if the First Amendment were put to a popular vote today, it would fail by a 60% to 40% vote.

This issue of the amendment ranks dead last on a list of priorities for voters.

The U.S. Supreme Court has made clear that forcing you to speak when you do not wish to speak raises the same First Amendment free-speech problem as raised when the government prohibits you from speaking." ()

Dick Durbin

The United States Senate learned very little from Littleton, Colorado ... We defeated a sensible amendment that would have at least had a background check at gun shows.

The state's Transportation Improvement Plan had an amendment to it. What it means is, the intersections will be funded for improvements in FY06 and will most likely go to construction in spring or summer of this year.

The state is not going to restrict their First Amendment rights, just as we don't restrict the political giving of thousands of people who contract with the state of Texas.

The subcommittee missed an opportunity to maintain the free and open Internet that we have come to value over the years. The amendment ... would have set fair and reasonable boundaries on the conduct of telephone and cable companies which now will have control over the Internet, while guaranteeing the rights of consumers.

Mark Brown

The tape is not direct evidence, but is indeed, unreliable hearsay, which violates the defendant's Sixth Amendment rights. The defendant cannot cross-examine a videotape.

The terms of reference have been amended in accordance with Mr Cole's request that he be given until the end of June to deliver his report.

The tension we have is whether a private institution should live by societal First Amendment protection or whether a private institution should go its own way. At this point, Syracuse as an institution tilts toward having a code and enforcing it.

Rather than make tough choices on spending, the Assembly decided to pass an amendment in the middle of the night without any public hearing and without any study of what the proposal actually does.

Projects like Cape Wind would help put America on the path toward energy independence. This amendment emerges from nowhere, from the back door, from closed rooms.

Private companies can always do what they want, ... I don't think this amendment is going to change business. There's a lot of scaring going on, with folks telling people that if they vote for this, they're discriminating. I can tell you there is no discrimination in our company, and this amendment isn't going to change that.

For private employers, there is normally no special First Amendment right to get out of work to engage in a protest. A company might decide that it's good for morale to accommodate the exercise of freedom of speech on an issue that is very important to people, but that's an employment judgment not law.

David Tom

It's right in the middle of Amen Corner. When the greens are really rolling, it doesn't get much tougher than that.

It's unfortunate that those that oppose the marriage amendment are using issues like domestic violence as scare tactics.

The intent had been to provide them with $1 million each. There was not as much in (the budget) as initially thought. We're going to be able to correct it with a floor amendment tomorrow.

The Michigan courts would not acknowledge this man's First Amendment rights, but we're confident that the federal court will. He was punished for insisting on the right to practice Catholicism and refusing conversion to the Pentecostal faith.

The military must be very careful in not violating an individual's First Amendment rights,

Jerry Yang

The Internet, as a First Amendment medium, hinges on free expression, and that means free advertising.

The issue is, can you make a law to restrict free speech? The First Amendment says that 'Congress shall make no law (abridging the freedom of speech).' No law, period.

Thomas Jefferson

The beauty of the second amendment is that it will not be needed until they try to take it.

The bankruptcy law was not intended to attack physicians but it is the law of unintended consequences. You just can't look at the bankruptcy law in isolation. You must look at it in the context of Amendment 8, the 'three strikes' law.

It's important that kids feel free to exercise their First Amendment rights, but they should also know that it isn't without consequences.

Anthony Romero

It's increasingly clear that the government is involved in political surveillance of organizations that are involved in nothing more than lawful First Amendment activities, ... It raises very serious questions about whether the FBI is back to its old tricks.

This is clearly a First Amendment issue and my clients had the right to do what they did.

Once people have a chance to see the entire exhibit, I think that will help them understand the content better. The artists here are just celebrating their First Amendment rights.

Jeb Bush

Not making a good-faith effort to implement this after the state has voted and Broward County has voted, to have it be back on the ballot I think is wrong, ... Having said that, you could implement it and then put it back on the ballot -- another constitutional amendment -- and that would be fair game.

Jeb Hensarling

The newest battlefield in the fight to protect the First Amendment is the Internet, ... The Internet is the new town square, and campaign finance regulations are not appropriate there.

It's not a good thing to have somebody like Fred Phelps out there screaming things while your loved one is being buried but unfortunately, he does have a right under the First Amendment to do that.

Everyone involved with this misguided law has known from the start that it is an unconstitutional infringement on the First Amendment freedoms of those who create and sell video games.

David Daniels

The biggest concern with that amendment are annual increases with no decreases. If we have substantial bad economic times, it continues to go up.

Chris Barron

The Ninth Amendment makes it clear that all the rights spelled out in the Constitution aren't the end of rights as we know them. It makes it clear that there are rights reserved to people that aren't spelled out in the Constitution.