A highly charged school prayer battle that doesn’t directly involve the state of Texas seems a strange fight for an attorney general who has pledged to run a nonpolitical office. But Attorney General John Cornyn will be at the U.S. Supreme Court March 29, as he presents part of the arguments in support of Santa Fe Independent School District’s policy of allowing student-initiated prayer before football games. Cornyn, who in January filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of Gov. George W. Bush, Texas and eight other states, petitioned the court to be allowed to present part of the arguments.
University of Texas Law Professor Doug Laycock, a nationally recognized expert on religious freedom issues, says there was no reason other than politics for Cornyn to become involved. Laycock has sided with Jane Doe, the Santa Fe student who challenged the prayer policy.
