Why Republican governor of Tennessee VETOED bill to make Bible official state book

By Sarah Fisher, Truth Revolt 

The governor of Tennessee has vetoed a bill that would have made the Bible the official state book. Gov. Bill Haslam said he vetoed the bill based on constitutional issues.

“In addition to the constitutional issues with the bill, my personal feeling is that this bill trivializes the Bible, which I believe is a sacred text,” Haslam wrote to the speaker of the state house, Beth Harwell.

“If we believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God, then we shouldn’t be recognizing it only as a book of historical and economic significance. If we are recognizing the Bible as a sacred text, then we are violating the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Tennessee by designating it as the official state book,” he wrote.

The state’s attorney general also came forward to say the bill violated the U.S. Constitution.

The bill had passed both chambers of the Tennessee General Assembly.

If Haslam had signed the bill, Tennessee would have become the first state to make the Bible its state book.

Senator Steve Southerland, R-Morristown informed the Senate clerk that he intends to push for an override of the veto. House sponsor Rep. Jerry Sexton R-Bean Stanton said the polls show that residents want the Bible to be the state’s book.

“Sen. Southerland and I are prepared to move forward with a veto override and we plan to do exactly that,” Sexton said through his spokesman.

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