INHOFE AND WICKER: Lifting Obama’s gag order on military chaplains
Our Founding Fathers spoke much about the importance of “freedom of conscience” and its underpinning of all other freedoms. In 1803, Thomas Jefferson said, “We are bound, you, I, and every one to make common cause even with error itself, to maintain the common right of freedom of conscience.”
Recent decisions by the Obama administration and Pentagon leaders threaten this common right, and their assault on freedom of conscience raises new and serious concerns — especially for our servicemen and women. Our armed services were created with an apolitical framework, and this unique platform has helped maintain Americans’ trust and respect for the military. Since repeal of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, however, the administration has looked to the military as a way to advocate a liberal social agenda and challenge Americans’ freedom of conscience.
Last year, the Department of Defense (DOD) said state laws would be acknowledged and upheld when it came to marriage and civil unions. Now, in a heated presidential election season, DOD and the Obama administration are pushing the limits on their promise and the rule of law for the sake of politics. A prime example of this occurred in May, when the first homosexual marriage-like ceremony took place in a chapel on Fort Polk in Louisiana.
Sens. Wicker & Inhofe
10/5/12
Magnolia Tribune
