CNN host Abby Phillip dismissed the idea posed by Republican Louisiana lawmaker Lauren Ventrella that Christian values are the “moral fiber” of the U.S. as a country by citing, among other proof, the ‘In God We Trust” motto on the dollar bill.
Ventrella appeared on CNN Newsnight to mount a “secular” defense of the so-called Ten Commandments bill she co-authored and which was signed into law on Wednesday. The bill requires a poster-sized display of the Ten Commandments, the law delivered by Moses in the Hebrew Bible.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), along with two other civil liberties groups, are suing Louisiana over the new law that they claim is “blatantly unconstitutional.”
Phillip led a debate on Thursday between the two Louisiana State representatives, Ventrella and Democrat Kyle Greene, who voted against the bill.
Greene argued that the bill has “no secular legislative purpose and it is also plainly religious.” He accused legislators like Ventrella of “attempting to basically infuse religious indoctrination into our private schools.”
In reply, the GOP lawmaker argued for the interpretation of the Ten Commandments in “historical context of the document” as a basis for “moral fiber” of the U.S.
The host interrupted: “I’m sorry, I’m not understanding what you’re saying here. Are you saying that the Ten Commandments are the basis for the moral fiber of the country? On what basis are you saying that?”
“You specifically asked me, how would this not
Phillip pressed: “Yeah. I mean, it’s a religious text. So what does that have to do with the founding of this country in terms of the moral… I mean, I don’t even know what that means.”
Ventralla then went on to claim that the text of the Ten Commandments underpinned the “moral” basis that the U.S. “was founded on.”
She continued: “Look at the walls of the Supreme Court, they even have a picture of the Ten Commandments. This is not something that’s so preposterous to say that this country, that its original laws, look endowed by our creator. I mean that is something that is historical. We know it is, it is important to this day.”
Phillip pushed back, again, on the idea that the bill was secular and not about faith, pointing out: “The courts have already ruled on almost exactly the same issue. Are you confident that now suddenly they will completely change course?”
Ventrella argued that there was precedent: “We pray as a nation, our legislature in fact still opens with prayer. And so again, if you look at the document with the Ten Commandments and… Look, ‘In God We Trust’ is on the dollar bill… If I had one right now, I’d show you: ‘In God We Trust’. There are certain things that resonate with this country.”
The host replied: “‘In God We Trust’ was put on the dollar bill in
The lawmaker responded: “Well, it’s still on our dollar bill no matter how you want to look at it, it’s still there every day. But again, I want to turn back to the purpose of this bill, the importance of this bill and what needs to be highlighted is that we are in no way trying to indoctrinate or force religion on students. We are merely putting it there as an option, as a choice.”
She added: “There is so much doom and gloom in this country. There’s an uptick in crime… What is so preposterous and terrible that we’re being sued for something that’s merely a moral compass that all of us should live by.”
Watch above on CNN.