Judge Roy Moore sparked headlines for comments he made regarding the controversy of NFL players kneeling for the national anthem.

In an interview with Time, Moore stated the following:

It’s against the law, you know that? It was a act of Congress that every man stand and put their hand over their heart. That’s the law. If they didn’t have it in there, it would just be tradition. But this is law. If we disobey this, what else are we going to disobey?

While the former Alabama Supreme Court Justice was criticized for his remarks, he isn’t wrong.



36 U.S. Code § 301 legally recognizing the Star Spangled Banner as America’s national anthem does, in fact, instruct all present to:

face the flag and stand at attention with their right hand over the heart, and men not in uniform, if applicable, should remove their headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the heart.

Those instructions are placed in the legal code, and there is obviously no penalty for failing to follow them. It is worth noting that Judge Moore did not suggest that players should face criminal penalty for engaging in their protest.

Of course, while Moore is correct in what the law says about standing for the anthem, the notion that individuals should blindly follow the law that is one all Americans should reject. In fact, Moore’s own example of courageously standing up in the face of improper Federal judicial rulings against him is a reason the Liberty Conservative chose to endorse him in the Alabama Senate race.

Interestingly enough, Moore’s own record regarding matters of criminal justice, including issuing opinions against overly harsh rulings levied against minorities, is another reason he is a candidate deserving of support from libertarians, and why he will be an effective ally for Rand Paul and other reform advocates in the Senate.

Without question, Roy Moore’s actions as a Supreme Court judge have done more for those hurt by America’s police state than Colin Kaepernick and his fellow protesters are likely to ever do.