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Opinion
Mark Trahant: Three cheers for the First Amendment


"The First Amendment is vibrant in Washington state. We, the people, are raising dissent worthy of celebration. In this post-election season, citizens have called on four of the five freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights: free speech, free press, freedom of assembly and the right to petition for redress of grievances. The only thing missing right now is freedom of religion -- and I suppose someone out there could cite Leviticus.

Usually elections involve discourse (speech and press) followed by a vote. But this round, Washington citizens get to petition and assemble because we all think we know who the "real" governor is, either Christine Gregoire or Dino Rossi.

Give credit to the blog world for giving the First Amendment such a great workout this election season."

Get the Story:
Mark Trahant: First Amendment thrives in state (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer 1/9)

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