Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Politics Supreme Court May Rule on 'Choose Life' License Plates
Posted by Brantley Hargrove on Tue, Apr 28, 2009 at 5:16 AM
We're a little less progressive here in Tennessee. In fact, as anyone who's driven .05 miles on any Tennessee street knows, Choose Life plates have already been issued by the state. That could change depending on how the Supreme Court rules on this, if the justices do at all.
Here's what's at stake: Teaparty tinfoil-hatters and the like will be the first to decry big government and any incursion it makes into their lives. Yet when it comes to quite possibly the most personal issue in a woman's life, they're rah-rah Big Brother and his authoritarian thumb fixed firmly on her reproductive rights. You know, I'm not sure I'm ready to let go of that piece of irony. But I'm conflicted, because it always struck me as off-putting and inappropriate that a state-issued tag can advertise one side of a politically polarizing wedge issue.
In all likelihood, that will be exactly what the Supreme Court examines. If the justices decide the license plates convey state speech--which I think any reasonable person would say they do--then the First Amendment argument goes out the window.
Comments (3)
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No need to get rid of pro-life plates, lets just get pro-choice plates made. I'm sure you would see lots of those on the road. What steps must be met to get a plate into circulation? And it would really piss off the pro-life people so its really a win win.
What would the image on the pro-choice plate be?
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Advocates tried (several times) to get a pro-choice plate. The problem is that in this state, the creation of a specialty plate requires a vote by the general assembly. They refused to pass legislation creating the plate (even though all other requirements were met). This was the subject of a lawsuit brought by the ACLU of Tennessee. ACLU won in lower court, but the 6th Cir. reversed, holding that the plates were "government speech," and therefore, the government had no obligation to allow free speech. Click on my name for more information.
