At the recent confirmation hearing of Office of Management and Budget deputy director nominee Russell Vought, Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT), joined by Sen. Chris van Hollen (D-MD) asked him a number of intrusive and openly hostile questions about his religious beliefs.[1] We find the manner in which these questions were asked, and even more so, their substance, to be not only extremely disturbing but unconstitutional.
Senators Sanders and van Hollen were apparently bothered by a past blog post of Vought’s in which he defended a religious school’s religious doctrine. Part of the post stated: “Muslims do not simply have a deficient theology. They do not know God because they have rejected Jesus Christ, His Son, and they stand condemned.” In the hearing, Sanders asked Vought whether he really believed that Muslims and Jews and “people who are not Christians are going to be condemned.” When Vought emphasized that he was simply declaring long-held Christian truths while making a theological argument, Sanders interrupted and said his views weren’t very “respectful,” finally declaring Vought to be “not someone who this country is supposed to be about.”
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) decided Sanders’ line of questioning was worthy and pursued Sen. Sanders same line of questioning, saying “No one is questioning your faith. … It’s your comments that suggest a violation of the public trust in what will be a very important position.”
These questions and comments are quite disturbing. What’s particularly alarming about them is they reveal Senator Sanders’ and van Hollen’s inability to discern between private religious beliefs and public policy. There was no mention of any possible public policy application of Vought’s beliefs, either at the hearing or in his record. There can be nothing in this exchange to which Sanders or van Hollen could object aside from the nature and substance of Vought’s personal beliefs which are, as Sen. Sanders pointed out in the hearing, held by a majority of the American people.
So, in addition to engaging in an unconstitutional religious test for public office, Sanders and van Hollen display dangerously imprecise and wrong-headed thinking that exclude from public service any person whose religious views the government doesn’t like.
The very founding of our country is anchored in the idea, set forth in the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution, that the federal government should not order compliance with any specific theology. Thus, if Sanders and van Hollen believe their theological views are permissible for a government official but that Vought’s are not, the creation of such a paradigm would “establish” a government religion and violate the very principle of the First Amendment these Senators claim to support.
Regardless, this incident shows that the singling out of private religious beliefs during a confirmation hearing has no place in America. Candidates for public office must be assessed on the policies they propose and their ability to serve the public good. To do otherwise only furthers the type of bigotry which Sanders and van Hollen purport to condemn.
| The Honorable Edwin Meese III
Former Attorney General President Ronald Reagan
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The Honorable Becky Norton Dunlop
Chairman, Conservative Action Project Former White House Advisor, President Ronald Reagan
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| Tony Perkins MPA
President, Family Research Council President, Council for National Policy
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The Honorable Bob McEwen
U.S. House of Representatives Former Member, Ohio
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| Michael A. Needham
Chief Executive Officer Heritage Action for America
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The Honorable David McIntosh
U.S. House of Representatives Former Member, Indiana |
| Cleta Mitchell, Esq.
Attorney
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The Honorable Colin A. Hanna
President Let Freedom Ring, Inc.
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| David Bozell
President ForAmerica
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Ed Corrigan
Former Executive Director Senate Steering Committee
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| The Honorable Jim DeMint
U.S. Senate Former Member, South Carolina
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William L. Walton
Vice President Council for National Policy
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| The Honorable T. Kenneth Cribb, Jr.
Former Counselor US Attorney General
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Richard Manning
President Americans for Limited Government
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| Brian S. Brown
President National Organization for Marriage
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Rod D. Martin
Founder & CEO The Martin Organization, Inc.
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| Sherri R. Martin
Executive Vice President The Martin Organization, Inc.
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Haley E. Martin
President The Martin Foundation
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| Evelio Silvera
Campaign for the American Future
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Nicholas Stehle
Campaign for the American Future |
| Anthony Allen
President Hannibal LaGrange University
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Barry Creamer
President Criswell College
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| Shawn A. Mitchell
National Chaplain, National Federation of Republican Assemblies
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Jerry Melvin
President Florida Republican Assembly
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| Robert K. Fischer
Meeting Coordinator Conservatives of Faith
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Rebecca Hagelin
Board of Directors, Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk & Secretary, CNP |
| Ken Boehm
Chairman National Legal and Policy Center
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Gary Marx
Former Executive Director Faith & Freedom Coalition
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| Sean Noble
President American Encore
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Belden Bell
Co-Chair Heritage Legacy Society |
| Gary L. Bauer
President American Values
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Lee A. Beaman
Chief Executive Officer Beaman Automotive |
| Donna Hearne
Chief Executive Officer The Constitutional Coalition
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Khadine Ritter
President Eagle Forum of Ohio |
| Ralph Benko
Syndicated Columnist
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E. Calvin Beisner, Ph.D.
Founder and National Spokesman, Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation
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| William Pascoe
Managing Partner Antietam Communications
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Kevin Freeman
Founder NSIC Institute
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| The Honorable Mike Spence
Founding President Conservative Republicans of California
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Bob Thompson
Former Administrator, The Weyrich Lunch Independent Consultant
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| The Honorable Mica Mosbacher
President Mosbacher Interests
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Jerome R. Corsi
Washington Bureau Chief
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| Karen England
Executive Director, Capitol Resource Institute & Nevada Family Alliance
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Anthony Saliba
Director Saliba Venture Management
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| Penna Dexter
Co-host Point of View Radio
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Bill Dallas
CEO United in Purpose
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| Tim LeFever
Chairman Capitol Resource Institute
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Austin Ruse
President, C–Fam (Center for Family & Human Rights)
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| Caroline Camden Lewis
Owner Percipio Communications
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Michael R. Long
State Chairman NYS Conservative Party
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| Willes K. Lee
President, National Federation of Republican Assemblies
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Eunie Smith
President Eagle Forum
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| Floyd Brown
Chairman Western Center for Journalism
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The Honorable Mike Hill
Former Member Florida State House |
| Forest Thigpen
President Mississippi Center for Public Policy
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Joseph A. Morris
Morris & De La Rosa
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| Col Francis X. De Luca USMCR(Ret)
President Civitas Institute
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Anne Schlafly Cori
Chairman Eagle Forum |
| The Honorable Ken Cuccinelli II
President Senate Conservatives Fund
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James O’Hickey
Nutrition Sales AdvoCare |
| Melvin Adams
Past President RENEWANATION
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Tim Wildmon
President American Family Association |
| Dan Weber
Founder & CEO Association of Mature American Citizens
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Bob Carlstrom
President The Carlstrom Group, LLC |
| Allen Hebert
Chairman American-Chinese Fellowship of Houston
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The Honorable Tim Goeglein
Vice President for External and Government Relations Focus on the Family |
| Martha Boneta
Executive Vice President Citizens for the Republic |
Lewis K. Uhler
Founder and President National Tax Limitation Committee |
| James C. Dobson Ph.D.
Founder & President Family Talk |
Elaine Donnelly
President Center for Military Readiness |
| The Honorable James C. Miller III
Former Director of OMB President Ronald Reagan |
Tom McClusky
President March for Life Action |
| David N. Bossie
President Citizens United |
Ted Baehr
Worth Awareness Marketing |
| Joseph R. Gregory
CEO Gregory Mgt. Co. |
Ali Akbar
Senior Advisor BlackConservativesFund.com |
| Andrea Lafferty
President Traditional Values Coalition |
Randy M. Long
CEO Long Business Advisors, LLC |
| Penny Young Nance
CEO and President Concerned Women for America |
John R. Dodd
President The Jesse Helms Center |
| Susan A. Carleson
Chairman/CEO American Civil Rights Union |
John F. Tate
President America’s Liberty PAC |
| Elizabeth G. Tate
Executive Director America’s Foundation for Law and Liberty |
John McCardell
President America’s Liberty Committee |
| Linda Lagemann
Commissioner Citizens Commission in Human Rights |
Michael Bowen
CEO Coalition For a Strong America |
| Ralph A Rebandt II
Senior Pastor Oakland Hills Community Church |
Andresen Blom
Executive Director Hawaii Christian Coalition |
| Ed Martin
President Eagle Forum Education & Legal Defense Fund |
(All organizations listed for IDENTIFICATION purposes only)
[1] Nomination Hearing for Deputy Director of White House Budget Office, U.S. Senate Committee on the Budget, June 7, 2017 (start viewing at the 44:20 mark), https://www.budget.senate.gov/nomination-hearing-for-deputy-director_of-white-house-budget-office
