Democrat State Rep. Christina Bohannan voted against an amendment that changed the wording of a bill related to the Pledge of Allegiance from “offer” to “administer.” She said she would’ve preferred if the original language of the bill of “offer” remained the language so that administering the Pledge of Allegiance would remain optional for Iowa schools.
However, when the time came to vote on the bill, Bohannan voted yes, noting she has always loved the Pledge of Allegiance.
Bohannan noted that nobody spoke in favor of the bill at the subcommittee and there were only two public comments on the legislative website in support of the bill.
“Meanwhile, people all over Iowa are begging for COVID relief,” she said. “Thousands more are pleading for greater support of public education. So why not focus on the things that matter most to Iowans every day?”
Bohannan called the bill “another mandate from on high.”
She said that reciting the words of the Pledge in unison will not bring “real national unity” and suggested offering the Pledge of Allegiance on a daily basis is “indoctrination.”
“The job of schools is to educate, not indoctrinate,” she said.
In the end, Bohannan voted for the bill.
