Sen. Arlen Specter is sponsoring a bill to protect the rights of journalists to write without being called into court and compelled to divulge their sources or produce documents that were referenced in their reporting unless a court determines that the testimony or document is essential, that non-disclosure would be contrary to public well being and the court must consider the public benefit of compelling the action against the public benefit of maintaining the free flow of information. The bill is S. 2035 and is very important as we move forward past the Iraq War.

It’s especially important that this bill be approved at this time. The Bush administration has paid little heed to the Constitutional right of freedom of speech and freedom of the press provided by Article Three of the Bill of Rights.

Article 3 of the Bill of Rights: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

S. 2035 will reinforce the freedom provided by the Bill of Rights and prohibits a Federal agency from compelling a person to testify or produce a document for any protected activities. This has always been a fundamental right in the United States. However, the Bush administration has significantly weakened this important concept during the Iraq War. For this reason, this is important legislation and necessary to strengthen Article 3 of the Constitution’s Bill of Rights.

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