Congress corrects President Obama

http://tinyurl.com/49tpluq

Congress of the United States
Washington, DC 20515

December 6, 2010

President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear Mr. President:

We write today in response to a speech given on November 10, 2010, at the
University of Indonesia in Jakarta, Indonesia, in which you stated, "But I believe that the
history of both America and Indonesia should give us hope. It is a story written into our
national motto's. In the United States, our motto is E pluribus unum- out of many one... our nations show that hundreds of millions who hold different beliefs can be united in freedom under one flag."

E pluribus unum is not our national motto. In 1956, Congress passed and President
Eisenhower approved the law establishing 'In God We Trust' as the official national motto of the United States. This motto is also referenced in our national anthem and is engraved on our coins and currency.

Additionally, during three separate events this fall, when quoting from the
Declaration of Independence, you mentioned that we have inalienable rights, but
consistently failed to mention the source of the rights. The Declaration of Independence definitively recognizes God, our Creator, as the source of our rights. Omitting the word 'Creator' once was a mistake; but twice establishes a pattern.

In your speech in Indonesia, you mentioned being unified under one flag. The
Pledge of Allegiance to our flag says that we are "one nation under God." As President of the United States, you are our representative to the rest of the world. By misrepresenting things as foundational as the Declaration of Independence and our national motto, you are not only doing a disservice to the people you represent you are casting aside an integral part of American society.

John Adams said, "It is religion and morality alone, which can establish the principles
upon which freedom can securely stand." If Adams was right, by making these kinds of
statements to the rest of the world, you are removing one of the cornerstones of our secure freedom. If we pull the thread of religious conviction out of the marketplace of ideas, we unravel the tapestry of freedom that birthed America.

As members of the Congressional Prayer Caucus, a bi-partisan group of 68 Members
of the United States House of Representatives, we are dedicated to preserving America's religious heritage and protecting our religious liberty. We respectively request that you issue a correction to the speech you gave, as it does not accurately reflect America and serves to undercut an important part of our history. We are willing to meet with you to discuss this further if you would like. As President Ronald Reagan warned, "If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."

Sincerely,

This Was Signed By House Members:

J. Randy Forbes (VA-04)
Paul Broun (GA-10)
John Shadegg (AZ-03)
Donald Manzullo (IL-16)
Joseph Pitts (PA-10)
Gregg Harper (MS-03)
Robert Aderholt (AL-04)
Glenn Thompson (PA-05)
Jeff Miller (FL-01)
Mike McIntyre (NC-07)
Steve King (IA-05)
Louie Gohmert (TX 01)
John Boozman (AR-03)
David Reichert (WA-08)
Jason Chaffetz (UT-03)
Jim Jordan (OH-04)
Steve Austria (OH-07)
Mike Pence (IN-06)
Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05)
Joe Wilson (SC-02)
John Kline (MN-02)
Peter Roskam (IL-06)
K. Michael Conaway (TX-11)
Zach Wamp (TN-03)
Todd Tiahrt (KS-04)
Vernon Ehlers (MI-03)
Spencer Bachus (AL-06)
Mike Rogers (AL-03)
Thaddeus McCotter (MI-11)
Phil Gingrey (GA-11)
Scott Garrett (NJ-05)
Doug Lamborn (CO-05)
Phil Roe (TN-01)
John Carter (TX-31)
W. Todd Akin (MO-02)
Randy Neugebauer (TX-19)
Robert Wittman (VA-01)
Tom Price (GA--06)
Roscoe Bartlett (MD-06)
Virginia Foxx (NC-05)
Trent Franks (AZ-02)
Michele Bachmann (MN-06)