Rep. Michele Bachmann is taking aim at a federal court ruling that found the National Day of Prayer unconstitutional. The Minnesota Republican said the decision "seems to be outlawing the second half of the First Amendment."

"Congress is not allowed to establish religion, which means we aren't going to have a national church," Bachmann said. "But the other side of that tension is that Congress can also not prohibit the free exercise of religion."

Bachmann, an evangelical Christian, called the decision "patently absurd." Still, though she is known as a frequent critic of Obama administration economic policies, the Stillwater Republican has not been as outspoken in Congress on social issues such as school prayer, gay marriage and abortion — issues on which she cut her teeth in the Minnesota legislature.

The Freedom from Religion Foundation, based in Madison, Wis., filed the lawsuit that led to the recent ruling. The group contended the National Day of Prayer violates the Constitution's prohibition on establishing religion. In a press release from the foundation, co-president Annie Laurie Gaylor said, "It is such a profound violation of conscience for Congress to direct our president to tell all citizens to pray, and that they in fact must set aside an entire day for prayer once a year."

The National Day of Prayer was established in 1952. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan fixed the date as the first Thursday in May. The Obama administration has said it intends observe the day in 2010, as the judge has said the ruling should not go into effect until all appeals were final. An appeal is expected.

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Hayley Tsukayama is an intern in the Star Tribune's Washington bureau.