Republicans in Utah introduced a measure that would alter their oath of office so that lawmakers would swear to the state constitution before the U.S. constitution.
Rep. Kraig Powell (R) initially proposed a constitutional amendment to change the language in the oath from “this state” to “the State of Utah.”
But on Tuesday, Republicans on the House Revenue and Taxation Committee took Powell’s amendment a step further and proposed putting the Utah Constitution ahead of the U.S. Constitution in the oath, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.
Republican Rep. Brian Greene (pictured above) said the amendment “reflects our duty as state legislators to first and foremost uphold the Constitution and make sure the federal Constitution does not run roughshod over the state Constitution,” according to the Tribune.
“This is a delicate balance and I certainly recognize that, but it’s also a special charge we have as state legislators,” he said.
According to the Tribune, Rep. Jon Stanard (R) opposed the measure, arguing that the U.S. constitution is the “supreme law of the land.”
The committee passed the measure, sending the amendment to the full House for approval. The amendment would need to be approved by two thirds of both the House and Senate, and would then need to be voted on by voters in 2016.
H/t Right Wing Watch
Apparently, the Utah GOP needs a lesson in the law.
The US Constitution ALWAYS takes precedence over the state constitution—of any state.
This kind of ignorance is breathtaking.
Next, they’ll be arguing for interposition and nullification—they’re halfway there already.
I think it’s a philosophical exercise. Instead of trying to count angels on the head of a pin, they’re trying to find out how high symbolic bullshit can be piled before it collapses under its own weight.
Will citizens of the state also have to sing Utah Uber Alles BEFORE singing the National Anthem, as well?
Nah, that Supremacy Clause is only advisory and pre-empted by the 10th Amendment, don’t you know?
I saw a guy like this once at a township meeting. The township wanted to build a park, and he didn’t like the idea because he lived nearby and thought naughty people might end up near his house, so he read out a whole long manifesto about how municipal governments ought to work, and coincidentally enough the ideal-in-his-view system of working would have resulted in—drum roll please—no park. It’s the same with these RWNJ people—they love the federal Constitution except when they don’t because it creates an outcome they don’t like. Oh, by the way, spoiler alert*
*they built the park ha ha