Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam has vetoed a bill that would have made The Bible Tennessee’s official book.
“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,” wrote Haslam in a letter to the Speaker of the House. “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.”
Last year, the state’s House passed the bill, but the state’s Senate rejected the bill shortly after. Still several senators pushed the legislation again this year.