A California city council has voted unanimously to display the phrase “In God We Trust” in the back of the council chambers.
Some are calling the vote a small Christmas miracle because the often contentious Irvine City Council found something that every councilman could support.
The motto will sit atop the room’s “freedom shrine,” a collection of documents from important moments in America’s history dedicated to the city by the Exchange Club of Irvine.
Earlier this year, Mayor Steven Choi proposed displaying “In God We Trust” in Irvine City Hall, citing as inspiration the other Orange County cities that have done so in recent years. A Bakersfield councilwoman is behind a nationwide effort to get the phrase, the U.S. motto, displayed in government offices.
Piggybacking on Choi’s proposal, Councilwoman Lynn Schott — who was recently appointed mayor pro tem — earlier this year found support for also displaying at city hall “E Pluribus Unum,” a phrase displayed on the Great Seal of the United States.
The discussion Tuesday was about design and placement.
Councilwoman Beth Krom said she continues to oppose putting either phrase in the room where the council conducts business. But at the meeting, the last time the council is scheduled to convene in 2015, she suggested a placement for the phrases that, in the spirit of the season, she would support.
Krom said she would back both phrases being displayed over the “freedom shrine,” perhaps separated by the city seal, an eagle or other patriotic symbol.
Schott said that while she would rather see “In God We Trust” in the front of the room, coming to a consensus was ultimately more important.