Normally, public officials must take an oath of office in which they swear to uphold the Constitution. That's changing in Wisconsin, though.
In last fall's elections, Wisconsinites approved a ban on gay "marriage." In Madison, however, local results were strongly against the ban. Many public officials are scandalized by this constitutional amendment and are now unwilling to swear to uphold the state constitution. The Madison city council voted this week to allow elected and appointed officials to make their oath without swearing to uphold the constitution we actually have. They are given the option of making a statement (either verbally or in writing) that declares they are taking the oath of office "under protest" and will work to change the state constitution where they disagree with it.
I can understand a desire to go into politics to work for your cause, even if (maybe "especially if") you don't agree with the status quo. I can see that someone might say he can't support everything in the constitution. Theoretically, this exemption should be allowed for conservatives and liberals alike. It also seems that a candidate's desire for one of these exemptions should be known by the voters prior to the election.
But even if I try really hard to see their side of it, there's still one thing I can't get over. With that kind of disclaimer, one wonders, "What's the point of taking the oath at all?"
You can read the AP story here.
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Oh great. I knew Madison was liberal, but for elected officials to take an oath saying that they intend to change the state constition rather than uphold it?! Yeech. What is the point of taking that oath? It does seem like it would just be better if they would not take the oath at all. Rather than something to the effect of "I swear to uphold the state constitution, and I promise I'll try to changee what I'm upholding". I'll say again, yeech. ...kind of leaves a bad feeling in my mouth.
ReplyDeleteSedition. That's the word.
ReplyDeleteAgreeing to uphold the constitution does not mean you agree with everything in it. It means you agree to the rule of law and the will of the people expressed in that law.
Not taking the oath means not taking the office, as far as I am concerned. There was a day when this kind of crap was not tolerated. Unfortunately today, there are no more cajones.
The tree of liberty is parched.