And it’s Bible, not bible.

Actually it should be Bible or Bible according to English Works. Unfortunately theres no differentiating between fiction and non-fiction. Since the Bible is fiction it'd be nice to be able to show it by placing it in quotes like "Bible" or something.

We are a Christian nation which shows respect to other religions by letting them worship freely.

Really? Brrrr.

See this page.

The link leads to a very thorough, well-researched, and well-footnoted page supporting my argument below. Some of those points have already been made above.

"We are a Christian nation..."

The United States government was set up, intentionally, as a CIVIL structure - with no specific religious overtones whatsoever. They had ample opportunity to make this a Christian country, but deliberately chose otherwise.

Pat, serious question: On what basis do you believe this to be a specifically Christian country?

If Ellison is to swear on a book other than the Bible, only tradition will change. But if hes forced to use the Bible then the constitution will change.

Peace from the middle east...

"Amendment I - Freedom of Religion, Press, Expression. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;..."

Now I'm not a constitutional lawyer but that sounds like it applies here. This Amendment might be subject to interpretation, like most human language, just like your bible. But at least the Constitution hasn't been hashed up and misinterpreted through translation from other languages and mucked up by kings etc. Yet...

And you're forgetting about YOUR lost 11th Commandment; "Thou shalt not impose your religion upon others, unsolicited."

I didn't say "petty" or "fake." I meant Christian values are the bedrock of OUR culture and OUR country, and therefore they should be respected. If I was elected to public office in Iran, and they said I must swear on the Koran, I would. Because it is that land's most sacred text, and even though I personally don't agree with it, I would show respect for the country and people I am about to serve. This is not a matter of religion, legal or illegal, it is a matter of common courtesy and respect for a nation's heritage. Not everything is about YOU THE INDIVIDUAL, the favorite fetish of the left. Sometimes you put your pride aside, give the lawyers a rest, and remove your hat for the people and what is important to them. In this land, it is the Bible. In Iran, it is the Koran. I didn't choose it this way, that's just how it happened. But out of respect for both, I'll never confuse the two.

The Koran, or a Golden Cow, or a lucky rabbit’s foot, may be sacred to you, but not most people in this country, so your oath is not going to mean much to anybody but you. We are a Christian nation which shows respect to other religions by letting them worship freely.

Let the mighty majority allow the "others" to practice their petty "fake" religions. Xenophobia is alive and well.

You have lunatic assumptions my friend, unless you happen to be kidding. You'd be surprised America isn't a theocracy and hasn’t been for the past 230 years (look it up, I'm telling you the Truth). Everyone YOU know just might follow the bible as their one favorite book but it does not thusly follow to be true for all Americans. America should not be pigeonholed by a Christian extremist like you. Fear of divine punishment by the Christian God is a FALSE reason to be blindly approved trustworthy. Being sworn into public office in the American legal system should not be a religious test. Ellison’s refusal exemplifies his want and need to be honest with himself and the American people he represents. If Ellison were to swear an oath on the Christian bible it would be a lie and a religious blasphemy on his part. Imagine if you were forced by extremists to use the “The Book of Satan” or Darwin’s “Origin of Species” when being sworn into public office. How would you feel about that? Some things need to be changed and should be changed.

Just because our current election stealing president happens to be a Christian extremist doesn't imply the rest of us are Christian extremists too. Please quit making America out to be something it isn’t. You need to get out of your little dream world. Not everyone is like you. Discover how diverse America really is! Wake up!

Look it up!!

We wouldn't need to know about the CAIR lawyer's religious preference, if he wasn't intending to fulfill their governmental court cases. It's not "which book", it's the OATH which commits one to our Nation....