There's a New Reagan Billboard Outside the GOP Convention — But Conservatives Probably Won't Like It

The Freedom from Religion Foundation is poking conservative voters with a quote from the darling of the Republican Party — former President Ronald Reagan.

This week, the atheist group will erect a billboard near the GOP Convention location in Cleveland featuring a Reagan quote stressing the importance of separation of church and state. The convention takes place next month.

FFRF quotes Reagan in Cleveland message to GOP convention... https://t.co/MIkpBehtQv pic.twitter.com/6EGURARKW7

— FFRF (@FFRF) June 27, 2016

"We establish no religion in this country … Church and state are, and must remain, separate," the billboard will read.

The comment, taken somewhat of out context, came from a speech the former president delivered while speaking to Temple Hillel leaders in Valley Stream, New York, on Oct. 26, 1984.

Here is Reagan's full statement:

"Our very unity has been strengthened by our pluralism. We establish no religion in this country, we command no worship, we mandate no belief, nor will we ever. Church and state are, and must remain, separate. All are free to believe or not believe, all are free to practice a faith or not, and those who believe are free, and should be free, to speak of and act on their belief."

The billboard will be located along Cleveland's Interstate Highway 71, north of 480, and will remain up for one month, the FFRF announced this week in a press release.

"The RNC needs to be reminded that our nation is predicated on a godless and entirely secular Constitution," foundation co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor said in the statement. "The fate of our Establishment Clause hangs in the balance of the election. We’re not voting for the next president — we’re voting for the next Supreme Court justice."

Northern Ohio Free Thought Society Director Marni Huebner-Tiborsky agreed with Gaylor's sentiment, saying the billboard "is definitely needed to remind our political leaders and the public that political campaigns should stick to a secular platform, where real change can happen."

Additionally, the bold display has the blessing of at least part of the Reagan family. In 2012, Reagan's 58-year-old son, Ron Reagan, was tapped to be on the FFRF's Honorary Board of Distinguished Thinkers. The younger Reagan described himself in a 2014 ad as a "lifelong atheist, not afraid of burning in hell."

The announcement from the anti-religion group comes after presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump met with nearly 1,000 evangelical leaders, where the businessman unveiled his evangelical advisory board and vowed to fight for religious liberty if he becomes president.

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