Mayor Tonya Hoeffel Doesn't Understand the First Amendment

After this post and the previous post, I think I just might turn this blog into a Rogues Gallery of sorts, populated by people who clearly don't understand Constitutional Law, but should.  And not in depth analyses of pertinent though obscure case law, but a basic understanding of well known constitutional  principles.  

Like the fact you, as a mayor, cannot walk into a store and start throwing things into the trash because you think they make baby Jesus cry:

Less than one month after of the massacre of Sikhs in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, Mayor Tonya Hoeffel of Garrett, Indiana has further offended the Sikh community. Mayor Hoeffel walked into a local convenience store, observed pamphlets about the Sikh religion on the store counter, and picked them up before throwing them in the trash bin.When manager and part-owner of the store Kulwinder Singh Nagra asked Mayor Hoeffel why she threw out the informational pamphlets, she replied, "It's against my beliefs. This is against Christianity."Although Mayor Tonya Hoeffel has since apologized, her behavior demands more thoughtful analysis and response. We must demand more from our elected officials and hold them accountable for their actions....After being called out by the local media, Mayor Tonya Hoeffel met with Kulwinder Singh Nagra to apologize for her mistake. She explained: "I personally believe if you do something wrong, you go to that person. I apologized for offending them [Sikhs]. I said I know they are a peaceful people."

If she really wanted to apologize, she would immediately leave office to spare the city from further embarrassment 

(Hat tip to Ed Brayton)