Letters to the Editor

Letter: Oaths

The dictionary definition of “oath”:

1. A solemn, formal declaration or promise to fulfill a pledge, often calling on God as a witness.

2. An irreverent or blasphemous use of the name of God or something held sacred; a curse, an imprecation.

The U.S. Senator’s oath of office: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of this office on which I am about to enter; so help me God.”

As Mr. Gordon Glaser recently wrote, “ The US Constitution … specifies that senators, when sitting on a trial of impeachment, ‘shall be on Oath or Affirmation.’ ”

In an impeachment trial, Rule XXV invokes this oath “I solemnly swear (or affirm) that in all things appertaining to the trial of Donald Trump, now pending, I will do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws, so help me God.”

It seems that Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan have sworn “true faith and allegiance” only to Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump, not the Constitution, justice or the rule of law. Impartiality? They harbor no reservations about their “purpose of evasion” and blaspheme “So help me God.” This, then, is their true allegiance oath, a curse and condemnation of a most sacred pledge of honor and of our trust.

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— Peter Mjos

Anchorage

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