“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America…”

I mean, you can stop right there. The rest is all fucked up too, but that shit’s weird. How can one owe allegiance to a flag, of all things?

And, it’s not “as representing the Republic for which it stands”, it’s “and to the Republic for which it stands”. The flag is a separate thing, the second clause is about allegiance to the republic, but the first part is just about the fucking flag.