As an ordained minister and an expert on church-state law, I do not claim any specialized experience or knowledge in national security in general or the workings of the United States Army in particular. Even so, President Obama’s choice of U.S. Rep. John M. McHugh (R-N.Y.) to be the next United States Army Secretary troubles me because his voting record in Congress shows that he is no friend to religious liberty and its constitutional corollary, the separation of church and state.
Rep. McHugh clearly has a background that is generally well-suited for the job to which he has been nominated. A former member of the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. McHugh is the Ranking Member of his party on the House Armed Services Committee, and previously served as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.
His congressional record on the relationship between church and state, however, raises serious questions about his understanding of the constitutional restraints on government in matters of religion. For example, he has supported numerous bills and legislation to allow the display of the Ten Commandments in public property, and to exploit confusion on the issue of prayer in public schools, including the infamous “Istook Amendment” that would amend the Constitution to essentially gut the Establishment Clause. Rep. McHugh also opposed a legislative provision that would have required the Secretary of Defense to report instances of improper proselytization of service academy cadets to Congress.
Rep. McHugh’s apparent indifference to church-state separation is especially troubling, given the well-documented controversies over religion in the military, such as religious discrimination and proselytization in the Air Force Academy, inappropriate sectarian activity by military chaplains, religious messages being incorporated in official briefings to former President George W. Bush, and others.
While I do not presume to criticize the President’s estimation of who is best qualified to serve as Army Secretary, I am disappointed that he selected a person who lacks a basic respect, or perhaps even an understanding, for the First Amendment’s protection of religious liberty through the separation of church and state.
Rev. Brent Walker is the Executive Director of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty.
