Washington, D.C.: House bill supports ‘under God’ in pledge

Spurred by a recent court ruling, the House passed a bill Tuesday that would reinforce support for references to God in the Pledge of Allegiance and the national motto.

The measure passed in a 401-5 vote. Those members voting against the bill were Reps. Barney Frank, D-Mass., Michael Honda, D-Calif., Jim McDermott., D-Wash., Bobby Scott, D-Va. and Pete Stark, D-Calif.

In addition to reaffirming support for the words “under God” in the pledge, the measure also reiterates that “In God we trust” is the national motto.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in June ruled that the phrase “under God,” inserted by Congress in 1954, amounts to a government endorsement of religion in violation of the separation of church and state.

The bill is a nonbinding resolution that will have no legal bearing on the lawsuit.

Senators are expected to pass the House version of the bill soon.

Miami: Storm downgraded, but may strengthen

The tenacious meteorological nuisance called Kyle, downgraded Tuesday to a tropical depression for the fourth time, could complete its prolonged tour of the Atlantic and reach Florida by Friday, forecasters said.

Will it be a tropical storm? A tropical depression? Just a shadow of itself, not much more than a few thunderstorms?

The fickle, 19-day-old system that regularly defies forecasting continues to do so. It could dissipate as it limps toward Florida or strengthen as it races toward the region.

“It is not clear how significant a system it will be,” said forecaster Richard Pasch of the National Hurricane Center in West Miami-Dade County.

The official forecast has Kyle making landfall Friday morning near Melbourne in central Florida with 35 mph winds, just below tropical storm strength.

Of course, given Kyle’s nature, that will probably change.

Wyoming: Group distributes fliers with racist messages

Fliers encouraging segregation and railing against nonwhites and Jews were discovered on parked cars by people attending a show in Casper by a black performance artist.

Sgt. Chris Walsh said the fliers were distributed outside of the Casper Events Center on Saturday by the Hillsboro, W.Va.-based National Alliance during a show by artist Kema Jamal.

One flier asked, “Diversity Is it really our strength?” The flier also targeted the Anti-Defamation League and concluded, “Just say no to more diversity.”

Another flier encouraged segregation, saying “Abraham Lincoln opposed integration.” A third flier purportedly showed crime statistics, without citing sources, that said blacks were many times more likely to commit rape, murder and armed robbery than whites.

Washington, D.C.: House passes national Amber Alert bill

Lawmakers are moving toward putting the Amber Alert system in every state, with the House passing a measure Tuesday that would create a coordinated nationwide network.

The Senate has already passed a similar measure. Tuesday’s 390-24 vote sets the stage for likely compromise negotiations to resolve differences between the two bills.

Seventeen states, including Kansas, already have the Amber Alert system, which is credited with helping in the highly publicized rescues of several children this year.

Law enforcement agencies typically send the alerts to radio and television stations with descriptions of the missing children, their abductors and other information. They also are broadcast on electronic highway signs