Officials launch task force to root out ‘anti-Christian bias' in VA
Veterans Affairs leaders launched a department-wide investigation into allegations of anti-Christian bias on Monday, asking employees to report fellow staffers for any 'informal policies, procedures, or unofficial understandings hostile to Christian views.'
The move, which follows a government-wide mandate for investigations into discriminatory practices against Christian beliefs, drew immediate condemnation from Democratic lawmakers for showing favoritism towards a single religion.
'While religious discrimination must be forbidden and fought, this internal VA memo lacks any factual basis or rationale,' said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., ranking member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee. 'It raises the specter of dividing the veteran community and favoring some religions over others.'
In a department-wide memo distributed Monday, VA Secretary Doug Collins said that a new department task force will 'review all instances of anti-Christian bias' throughout VA operations. That includes 'adverse responses to requests for religious exemption' and 'any observations of mistreatment for not participating in events or activities inconsistent with Christian views.'
LGBTQ Pride flags banned at VA facilities under new policy
In the past, some employees have claimed discrimination for being required to provide treatment of LGBTQ+ individuals or birth control medication to patients, claiming religious objections. Advocates have countered that veterans should not have their medical options curtailed because of individuals' personal beliefs.
Collins memo also asks employees to report 'any mistreatment or reprimand issued in response to displays of Christian imagery or symbols.'
In February, Collins ordered that displays of flags not in keeping with VA messaging — including LGBTQ+ Pride flags and other advocacy banners — be removed from department workspaces and common areas. It is not clear if flags with Christian imagery will now be exempted from that policy.
In addition to his VA leadership role, Collins serves as an Air Force Reserve Chaplain and is a practicing Southern Baptist.
President Donald Trump in February ordered VA and 15 other agencies to establish the anti-Christian-bias task forces to 'end the anti-Christian weaponization of government.' He claimed that past administrations' support for abortion rights and diversity efforts amounted to an attack on Christian beliefs.
Democratic lawmakers have disputed that. Blumenthal said that the new task force undermines efforts to ensure all veterans receive care and respect.
'The First Amendment ensures that all religions and faiths are treated equally, with full freedom of worship,' he said.
Officials from the advocacy group Americans United for the Separation of Church and State have called Trump's anti-Christian task force 'a Christian nationalist crusade' and accused the administration of using religious freedom misinformation 'to justify bigotry and discrimination.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Kash Patel Sends Ominous Threat in Response to L.A. Protests
The FBI says it will act on its own to squash the Los Angeles anti-ICE protests. FBI Director Kash Patel issued an ominous threat to the city and its residents late Sunday night, claiming that his agency would intervene in the multiday anti-Trump display without explicit direction. 'Just so we are clear, this FBI needs no one's permission to enforce the constitution,' Patel posted on X. 'My responsibility is to the American people, not political punch lines. LA is under siege by marauding criminals, and we will restore law and order. I'm not asking you, I'm telling you.' In a move that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem should agree with, California announced it would sue the federal government Monday, arguing that the Trump administration's order to send hundreds of National Guard troops toward Los Angeles, without coordination with the state's governor, was an unconstitutional breach of power. Hours earlier, FBI Public Affairs Assistant Director Ben Williamson shared that Patel had gotten off a call with 'senior leadership' addressing what they referred to as 'riots' in L.A., specifying that Patel and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino had 'offered all necessary resources from FBI HQ' to address the situation. Williamson said the pair 'reiterated the position that any perpetrator who attacks or interferes with law enforcement will be aggressively pursued and brought to justice.' Bongino made it plain that one of the agency's primary targets would be individuals suspected of assaulting officers, writing on X that he and Patel had notified all FBI teams to pursue suspected individuals 'long after order is firmly established.' 'We will not forget. Even after you try to,' Bongino posted. But Republicans have so far not been very successful at pinpointing wrongdoing in Los Angeles. Instead, some viral videos circulating in conservative circles of protest-related violence in the city are actually not from the weekend at all, but were instead taken in 2020 during the Black Lives Matter protests.
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
MN House, Senate convene for special session to pass state budget
Minnesota lawmakers returned to the Capitol Monday morning to complete the state's next two-year budget as agencies prepared to warn thousands of government employees of a potential government shutdown next month. Most of the state government only has funding through the end of June after the Legislature failed to pass the majority of the bills that form the roughly $66 billion state budget by the end of the regular legislative session on May 19. Gov. Tim Walz called a special session so lawmakers can finish their work. State leaders finalized the details in a series of mostly closed meetings over the last few weeks. The Senate and House went into session at 10 a.m. and are expected to finish their work by Tuesday morning. However, there's no guarantee that will happen. Democratic-Farmer-Labor and Republican legislative leaders and the governor may have signed an agreement to finish up the special session by 7 a.m. Tuesday, but nothing can stop other state senators and representatives from introducing amendments and engaging in lengthy debate on controversial bills. Some bills that are part of the budget deal between Walz, the tied House and DFL majority Senate may pass on thin margins. A proposal to end state-funded health insurance for adults in the U.S. without legal immigration status is opposed by many DFLers and may only pass with the support of Republicans and the DFL leaders who signed the agreement. Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy, DFL-St. Paul, and House DFL Leader Melissa Hortman, of Brooklyn Park, have said they agreed to remove coverage for adults to avert a government shutdown, which would interrupt services on a much larger scale. The immigrant care proposal was the first bill the House took up Monday morning, and representatives continued to debate the matter as noon approached. If the measure passes both chambers, Walz would have a tough time vetoing it. Republicans managed to get DFLers to agree to tie the activation of health care spending to ending MinnesotaCare for around 17,000 adults in the state who came to the U.S. illegally. Meanwhile, GOP lawmakers have expressed reservations about the tax and transportation bills. The tax bill includes an increase to the sales tax on cannabis, and Republican leadership had initially said it wouldn't support any new taxes, and some members may stick to that pledge. There were also questions on Friday about whether a proposal to shift $93 million in sales tax revenue from metro counties to the Metropolitan Council would survive floor votes, as members of both parties might turn on shifting money from local governments to a central planning agency. This is a developing story that will update throughout the day. Letters: It's unfortunate that we can't have certain conversations Gov. Tim Walz calls for special session for Legislature Monday Timeline for Minnesota special session blurry as budget talks continue MN government return to office order kicks in as shutdown layoffs loom Ramsey County: Economic Development Authority to allow flexibility on housing projects
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
How Trump Could Use The Insurrection Act To Deploy Troops In LA
As protests continue to flare in Los Angeles over the Trump administration carrying out immigration raids and deploying National Guard troops to the area, President Donald Trump has floated the idea of invoking the Insurrection Act over objections from California's governor and the mayor of LA. Invoking the Insurrection Act, which generally gives the president the authority to quell rebellion or unrest by deploying the military, would be an escalation of the administration's actions so far in California. On Saturday, Trump deployed at least 300 National Guard troops to downtown Los Angeles after thousands of protesters took to the streets. They largely concentrated themselves in the city's garment district, where federal agents had started conducting raids for undocumented workers on Friday. According to the Department of Homeland Security, rioters assaulted multiple ICE officers, 'slashed tires, defaced buildings and taxpayer funded property,' the agency said in a statement on Saturday. (The agency also singled out several Democratic lawmakers, accusing them of 'villainizing and demonizing' ICE agents.) Local news station KTLA reported Monday that at least five LAPD officers have been injured, requiring medical care. Six other officers experienced minor injuries that did require hospitalization. Many protesters were not violent nor particularly destructive, but some individuals lobbed rocks and fireworks at police, or set driverless cars on fire. Los Angeles police made roughly 150 arrests on Sunday, according to The New York Times. Law enforcement used flash-bangs and rubber bullets against protesters. During a live broadcast on Sunday, police hit a journalist in the leg with a rubber bullet. Trump signed a proclamation late Saturday that mobilized the Guard to respond to protests against the raids, claiming the demonstrations interfered with the 'faithful execution of federal immigration laws.' As tensions escalated on Sunday, the Pentagon said it was prepared to send in at least 500 active U.S. Marines to Los Angeles. Trump's proclamation is not an invocation of the Insurrection Act but instead relies on Title 10, or 10 USC 12406, a federal code that allows him to wield his authority as president to federalize the National Guard but only under very limited circumstances. Those circumstances include: an actual foreign invasion or the threat of a foreign invasion, an actual or threatened rebellion against 'the authority of the government of the United States,' or when the president is unable to executive the nation's laws with 'regular forces.' Before boarding Air Force One on Sunday, Trump was asked by reporters whether he intended to invoke the Insurrection Act outright. 'Depends on whether or not there's an insurrection,' he said, adding that he wouldn't let protesters 'get away with it.' 'We're not going to let them get away with it. We're going to have troops everywhere, we're not going to let this happen to our country. We're not going to let our country be torn apart,' Trump said. California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass have objected to the White House's use of the National Guard, and Newsom has said he intends to sue the administration. Newsom called the move by Trump to federalize California's National Guard 'purposefully inflammatory.' Typically, it is a state's governor who has control over that state's Guard, not the federal government. And notably, within Trump's proclamation is language that appears to clarify this. Under Title 10, the president is allowed to call the Guard into federal service in any state but 'orders for these purposes shall be issued through the governors of the States.' The Insurrection Act of 1807 — which is a bit of a misnomer since it is actually a combination of several statutes enacted by Congress from 1792 to 1871 — is a federal law that gives the president the power to deploy the military or National Guard to put down domestic rebellions, uprisings or other fits of civil unrest. The act uses Congress' constitutional authority to 'provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions.' When the Insurrection Act is invoked, it suspends the Posse Comitatus Act, which forbids the military from getting involved in local or state law enforcement. Invoking the law is rare; it has occurred just 30 times in history. The last time was in 1992 as riots gripped Los Angeles following the acquittal of police officers accused of viciously beating Rodney King and California's governor called on then-President George H.W. Bush for help. Trump floated the idea of invoking the Insurrection Act in 2020 after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis sparked a wave of nationwide protests, most of which were peaceful. Martial law and the Insurrection Act are not one and the same. The Insurrection Act is invoked, typically, to have the military assist civilian law enforcement. Martial law refers to when the military becomes enforcers of local and state laws. The Supreme Court has never ruled on whether the president can unilaterally declare martial law or whether he would need Congress to approve the declaration. A president can use the Insurrection Act in a number of ways. For example, its provisions state that troops can be deployed under the act regardless of whether a state asks for them to be sent there. And the law cites various reasons presidents may send them. Troops can be deployed to quell violent unrest or to simply enforce federal law in a given locality. (The latest president to invoke the Insurrection Act against a state's will was Lyndon Johnson when he federalized the Alabama National Guard to protect civil rights protesters that marched from Selma to Montgomery.) The president does not need congressional approval to invoke the Insurrection Act, though he is required to at least issue a proclamation first that demands anyone causing unrest leave that area before troops are sent in. Many provisions built into the Insurrection Act are vague. One statute gives the president the right to suppress rebellion, domestic violence or some 'unlawful combination or conspiracy' in any state impeding U.S. law. Conspiracy is not defined in this Insurrection Act statute, meaning, as the Brennan Center for Justice notes, this provision under the Insurrection Act umbrella could be interpreted to mean that the president can use military force against any two people he thinks are conspiring to break the law. Trump Sets National Guard On Los Angeles As Protesters Counter Immigration Raids: Live Updates California Governor Plans To File Lawsuit Against Trump Over National Guard Deployment To Protests 'Arrest Me, Let's Go': Newsom Punches Back At Trump Border Czar Kamala Harris Torches Trump Over 'Cruel, Calculated' Move Targeting Los Angeles Trump Deploys National Guard As Los Angeles Protests Against Immigration Agents Continue
