Military Religious Liberty

Floor Speech

Mr. FLEMING. Madam Speaker, the constitutional right to religious liberty is, with increasing frequency, being denied to the men and women in our military who swore to support and defend the Constitution when they enlisted.

Within the past month, we have seen a new case of an Air Force veteran who says he was relieved of duty by his commander because he would not champion same-sex marriages. This senior master sergeant with 19 years of service to his country has now been entangled in the military justice system, not for anything he has done or said, but for refusing a commander's order to make a statement that would violate his deeply held religious beliefs.

What's happening in this case violates current statutes, not to mention the First Amendment. That's why it's so crucial that Congress protect military religious freedom and its expression. My amendment to do that was passed in this House, and we need the Senate to act and the President to stop his threat to veto.

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