VA Urges Staff to Report Alleged Anti-Christian Bias as Part of Trump Order

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has established an internal task force to investigate allegations of anti-Christian bias. As part of a new order from President Donald Trump, employees are being asked to report instances of what they see as discrimination.

The move comes after an executive order in February that set up a government-wide effort to stop what Trump's administration calls the "anti-Christian weaponization" of federal agencies. The VA's task group will look into whether Christian workers were punished for speaking out or acting on their religious beliefs while Biden was in office.

In an email to staff, Doug Collins, the secretary of the VA and a Southern Baptist who serves in the Air Force Reserve, said that the group would "review the last administration's treatment of Christians." Employees were told to report any times they were mistreated because they wanted religious exemptions from COVID-19 vaccination requirements or because they wouldn't go through processes like abortion care or gender-affirming treatment because of their beliefs.

Civil rights activists are opposed to the plan because they believe it could favor one church over others. Mikey Weinstein, who runs the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, said the plan could put pressure on staff to show they are "Christian enough" and turn it into a religious test, which is against the Constitution.

Weinstein said, "It's a tarantula on the wedding cake of freedom of religion and speech." He also noted that worried VA workers have already complained to his group.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, the top Democrat on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, shared these concerns. "The memo doesn't have any facts or a good reason for being," he said. "It makes me worry that it could split the veteran community and give more power to some religions than others."

Collins' office wouldn't say anything else about the task group. Other government departments, such as the State Department, have also received similar instructions, asking them to report discrimination against Christian workers from 2021 to 2025.

Some people are against the order because they think it could make religious differences worse in the government workforce while pretending to protect religious freedom.