This is an interesting vote and will likely be struck down in the future. In 1990, Justice Anton Scalia wrote the opinion in Employment Division v. Smith. I met him briefly and listened to his lecture some years ago at Loyala School of Law in LA. In that opinion, the court basically gutted the free exercise clause of the first amendment. In 1991 congress passed the RFRA (Religious Freedom Reformation Act) in an attempt to overturn the Smith case. In 1992, (and the name of the case escapes me now but email if you really want all this) the Sup. Ct. overturned RFRA saying that Congress had exceeded its power under the constitution. This fight between congress and the sup. ct. (legislative and judicial branch of the gov't) is significant because dating back to the founding of this nation there was a case between Marburry v. Madison where the Sup. Ct. appointed itself sole power to interpret the constitution. So, I anticipate that the scenario of the early 90 MIGHT play out again. That said, the sup ct is a political body (not in the sense of a democratic election politics, but in the sense of political power). If the Sup.Ct. receives enough pressure from the "people" they will find a way to support congress and not go against the earlier ruling. You should know that if you think the president or congress runs this country, you are very wrong. You are run by the freedom and punishment as dispensed from the sup. ct. and the Honorable Justices are appointed for life by any president in office a Justice dies or retires. You should also know that some of the voter turnout and campaign funding for presidential election has to do with what candidate is conservative/liberal and expected to hold office during a time when Justices are expected to retire. This us why the Clinton administration had so much controversy over trivial things that other presidents were never hit with and also why Bush/Gore became one of the most notable elections in history. That said, welcome to politics 102 and we hope you enjoy the class. I said on an earlier thread that this was a very interesting topic and that I wanted to finish a law review article on the subject. As an attorney, an artist, and a member of this community, I made my email addy available for anyone that wanted to assist and keep me focused on writing. I have not received any interest. Your call. I'm willing to write the legal technical stuff, just need some support and encouragement cuz I do work a full schedule (80 hour week). eric@annsartgallery.com And come visit the family site. www.annsartgallery.com