WASHINGTON (AP) — Airman 1st Class Spencer Stone's military unit is nominating him for the prestigious Airman's Medal in honor of his actions to subdue a heavily armed gunman on the Amsterdam-to-Paris train last Friday, Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James told reporters.
And Stone — whose nickname from his training days has been "Captain America" — could eventually be eligible for the Purple Heart, if French authorities conclude the attack was a terrorist event, according to Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh.
Never heard of the proposed Blaine Amendment to the U.S. Constitution? Neither have most Americans. And even if you'd heard, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was irrelevant, considering it was defeated in the late 19th century. Yet the Blaine Amendment's influence remains one of the most pernicious threats to religious liberty in the United States today.
Introduced in 1875, the original Blaine Amendment was an attempt to amend the U.S. Constitution by explicitly banning any government funds from going to "sectarian" institutions. The Amendment gained its name from Senator James G. Blaine, who had just finished three terms as Speaker of the House and had his eye on the Republican nomination for the White House.
