From ACLU Online

HOUSE VOTES TO BAR FEDERAL COURTS FROM HEARING PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE CASES

The House recently passed a controversial measure to deny judicial review on certain First Amendment issues. The "Pledge Protection Act of 2005" would strip jurisdiction from all federal courts, including the Supreme Court, in any First Amendment case involving the Pledge of Allegiance. It is the latest of several similar politically motivated measures that would interfere with America's independent judiciary and would jeopardize access to fair and impartial courts. "This bill would effectively deny access to all federal courts to religious minorities, parents, schoolchildren and others who seek to have their religious and free speech claims heard," said Terri Ann Schroeder, an ACLU Senior Lobbyist. "The purpose of an independent judiciary is to have it remain free from intimidation and outside influence. It is very unlikely that our founding fathers ever envisioned a system of checks and balances that could be so easily upset any time the Congress disagrees with the courts or finds it politically expedient to limit their independent authority."