12/17/2011
Looks like the Drudge Report is the leading contender to win our Christmas Competition. There I learned Congressmen can’t say 'Merry Christmas' in mailby Mark Tapscott The Washington Examiner Dec 16, 2011
"Members who submit official determine if it can be "franked," or paid for with tax dollars, are being told that no holiday greetings, including "Merry Christmas," can be sent in official mail.
"I called the commission to ask for clarification and was told no 'Merry Christmas.' Also told cannot say 'Happy New Year' but can say 'have a happy new year' — referencing the time period of a new year, but not the holiday," said a Hill staffer who requested anonymity."
Note that this is not a matter of a communication which has the purpose of being a Christmas greeting — the ban is directed at any mail which dares to incidentally include the forbidden words. The Franking Commission dictates an allowable format:
"Franking Manual:
You may make reference to the season as a whole using language along the lines of 'Have a safe and happy holiday season.' It may only be incidental to the piece rather than the primary purpose of the communication."
A franking commission spokesman confirmed to The Washington Examiner that Members of Congress indeed cannot wish constituents "Merry Christmas" in any official mailing.
"Currently, incidental use of the phrase Happy Holidays is permissible but Merry Christmas is not," said Salley Wood."
This is nothing less than the deliberate use of the power of the State to eradicate recognition of the central American historical fact, honestly noted by E.V. Kontorovich in his original War Against Christmas essay:
"In America, Christianity is different from other faiths in one salient respect. Christians are 84 percent of the population while the runners up, Judaism and Islam, make up just 2 percent each.
For better or worse, the nation was founded by Protestants and built by Christians, who indelibly marked American culture with the trappings of their faith."
Protest to the Franking Office and the Chairman of the controlling House Administration Committee, Congressman Dan Lungren.
This is clearly a situation which calls for the intervention of the House Majority Leader, Eric Cantor. According to Politico:
"Republican presidential front-runner Newt Gingrich waged a quiet war on Christmas — or at least the Capitol Christmas Tree — shortly after becoming speaker of the House in 1995.
In a time of heightened political correctness, Gingrich preferred “Holiday Tree” over “Christmas Tree,” according to sources familiar with the annual tree-lighting ceremony at the foot of the Capitol.
It was…Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.), who prodded House Speaker Dennis Hastert to… change the name back in 2005, prompting some aides who remember the discussion to credit Cantor, the highest-ranking Jewish member of Congress, with “saving Christmas.”
The Gingrich who stole Christmas? By Jonathan Allen 12/8/11
Could the Franking Office be getting ready for a Gingrich Presidency?
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