"I BELIEVE" license plate works its way through Florida's legislature

Last week, I told you about the effort to add an openly Christianist license plate to Florida's already overflowing collection of plates commemorating (and financially supporting) sports teams, universities, environmental and artistic endeavors, and even anti-abortion zealotry. Well, the Legislature, in all its wingnutty wisdom, continues to give credence to this blatantly unconstitutional activity, as a House committee passed the license plate bill by an 8-2 vote.

Okay, here's the problem, and I'll say it in bold lettering so even you stupid fucking wingnuts can understand it: the state cannot support one religion over another. Period. Yet that's clearly the intent of the bill's sponsor, Rep. Edward Bullard.

Bullard, the plate's sponsor, said people who "believe in their college or university" or "believe in their football team" already have license plates they can buy. The new design is a chance for others to put a tag on their cars with "something they believe in," he said.

If the plate is approved, Florida would become the first state to have a license plate featuring a religious symbol that's not part of a college logo. Approval would almost certainly face a court challenge.

The problem with the state manufacturing the plate is that it "sends a message that Florida is essentially a Christian state" and, second, gives the "appearance that the state is endorsing a particular religious preference," said Howard Simon, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida.

But here's the real stunner: I thought Bullard would be from the Panhandle or somewhere similarly wingnutty, like the racist moron who's pushing the Confederate Heritage license plate.

Nope.

Rep. Bullard is an African-American Democrat from Miami-Dade County. He's not even a pastor, at least not by profession -- he's an educator. You'd think an educator would know that his proposal is antithetical to every tenet of American constitutional law and scholarship since the inception of the nation. Is it possible that the Bush crime syndicate's everpresent War on the Constitution has jaded even this man, who certainly should know better?

What's even worse is that Rep. Bullard apparently is an advocate of viewpoint discrimination. That is, he's for a Christian license plate, but not, say, an atheist plate (or, one presumes, an FSM plate):

Approving the plate could open the state to legal challenges, according to Josie Brown, who teaches constitutional law at the University of South Carolina. And it's not certain who would win.

"It would be an interesting close call," Brown said.

Simon, of the ACLU, said approval of the plate could prompt many other groups to seek their own designs, and they could claim discrimination if their plans were rejected. That could even allow the Ku Klux Klan to get a plate, Simon said.

Bullard, the plate's sponsor, isn't sure all groups should be able to express their preference. If atheists came up with an "I Don't Believe" plate, for example, he would probably oppose it.

Nope. Can't do that, Rep. Bullard. You can't pick and choose which religious plates are okay. You get a Christianist plate through, just get ready for the onslaught.

And you'll have only yourself to blame.

UPDATE (6:42 pm 4/24/08): Brian at Incertus examines the issue in a different light, but comes to basically the same conclusion: this license plate is a fucking joke. (And next time I'll try to remember to check there before ranting ...)