Plaintiffs' Offense At Government Behavior Does Not Establish Standing
FREEDOM FROM RELIGION FOUNDATION v. OBAMA (April 14, 2011)
Presidential proclamations inviting citizens to pray are as old as the country itself, dating back to George Washington. Congress enacted a statute in 1988 that calls on the President to issue an annual proclamation setting aside the first Thursday in May as a National Day of Prayer. President Barack Obama issued such a proclamation on April 30, 2010. Freedom From Religion Foundation filed suit against President Obama and his Press Secretary, alleging that the statute and the proclamations contravene the First Amendment. Judge Crabb (W.D. Wis.) agreed, concluding that the statute and the proclamation violated the First Amendment. She issued an injunction forbidding any further such proclamations. The President and his Press Secretary appeal.
In their opinion, Chief Judge Easterbrook and Circuit Judges Manion and Williams (concurring) vacated and remanded with instructions to dismiss. The Court first addressed plaintiffs’ standing and found it lacking. In order to establish standing, one must show injury, causation, and redressability. The statute itself imposes a duty only on the President. The plaintiffs do not have standing to object to a statute that imposes duties only on others. But the proclamation is addressed to all citizens, including the plaintiffs. The proclamation, however, imposes no duty -- it simply makes a request. Plaintiffs cannot show any injury caused by such a request. The Court cited the Supreme Court's decisions in Newdow and Valley Forge Christian College as controlling precedent.
Judge Williams concurred in a separate opinion. She distinguished Newdow, disagreed with what she thought was the majority's conclusion that a change in behavior is required for standing, noted a number of Supreme Court decisions on the merits where the standing injury is hard to distinguish from that of the Foundation, but ultimately concluded that Valley Forge precludes standing.
Michael Rigney practices in the law offices of GVC Ltd. in Chicago. In this blog, he reports on select