{"id":1137067,"date":"2021-12-21T09:35:12","date_gmt":"2021-12-21T14:35:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1137067"},"modified":"2021-12-21T09:35:14","modified_gmt":"2021-12-21T14:35:14","slug":"sen-cruz-leads-response-to-provide-military-personnel-religious-exemption-from-vaccine-mandate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sen-cruz-leads-response-to-provide-military-personnel-religious-exemption-from-vaccine-mandate\/","title":{"rendered":"Sen. Cruz Leads Response To Provide Military Personnel Religious Exemption From Vaccine Mandate"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsen-cruz-leads-response-to-provide-military-personnel-religious-exemption-from-vaccine-mandate%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1137067&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p class=\"m_2238442741652240196wordsection1\">Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz led a group of eight GOP senators and 38 Republican House members to file an amicus brief in support of 26 Navy SEALs and other service members seeking religious exemptions from President Joe Biden\u2019s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.<\/p>\n<p>The friend of the court <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cruz.senate.gov\/imo\/media\/doc\/final_brief.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">letter<\/a> in the case of U.S. Navy Seals v. Biden argued that both the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) and the First Amendment require the federal government to allow exemptions for the sincerely held religious beliefs of Armed Forces personnel.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReligious freedom is fundamental to every American\u2019s liberty,\u201d Cruz tweeted on Monday.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">My colleagues and I filed an amicus brief in U.S. Navy Seals v. Biden in support of 26 service members with religious objections to Biden\u2019s vaccine mandate.<\/p>\n<p>Religious freedom is fundamental to every American\u2019s liberty.<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/wlcpHoVLW9\">https:\/\/t.co\/wlcpHoVLW9<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SenTedCruz\/status\/1473050275049005057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 20, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The other senators who joined the brief included Rick Scott (R-FL), Mike Lee (R-UT), James Lankford (R-OK), Steve Daines (R-MT), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Mike Braun (R-IN), and Roger Marshall (R-KS). The 38 members of the House of Representatives were led by Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA).<\/p>\n<p class=\"m_2238442741652240196wordsection1\">\u201cPlaintiffs\u2019 religious liberty and the government\u2019s asserted interest in protecting our service members from COVID-19 need not be in conflict, especially where, as here, the individuals seeking an exemption are willing to adopt non-vaccination measures to protect themselves and others from the spread of COVID-19,\u201d the brief said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"m_2238442741652240196wordsection1\">\u201cThey are only in conflict here because Defendants refuse to accommodate Plaintiffs\u2019 religious objections even as they accommodate those who will not receive the vaccine for non-religious reasons. This violates RFRA by substantially burdening Plaintiffs\u2019 religious beliefs without a compelling reason, and violates the First Amendment\u2019s guarantee that government not discriminate against religion,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n<p>The letter also noted the military members seek the same freedom from encroachment \u201cby the very government\u201d they have sworn to protect.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur men and women in uniform have fought to protect the freedoms that every American, regardless of belief, enjoys. Now they ask this Court to protect their religious freedom from encroachment by the very government they have sworn to protect with their lives,\u201d the amicus brief said.<\/p>\n<p>The SEAL members\u2019 \u2013 including members who are Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, or Protestant\u2013\u201csincerely held religious beliefs forbid each of them from receiving the COVID-19 vaccine for a variety of reasons based upon their Christian faith as revealed through the Holy Bible and prayerful discernment,\u201d the lawsuit <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/defense-national-security\/three-dozen-navy-seal-sailors-lawsuit-religious-exemption-coronavirus-vaccination\">says<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPlaintiffs believe that receiving a COVID-19 vaccine that was tested, developed, or produced using aborted fetal cell lines would force them to violate their sincerely held religious beliefs by causing them to participate in the abortion enterprise, which they believe to be immoral and highly offensive to God,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n<p>As The Daily Wire previously reported:<\/p>\n<p><em>The Pentagon&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/pentagon-announces-vaccine-mandate-for-u-s-military\">announced<\/a>&nbsp;in August that COVID-19 vaccinations would be mandatory for all members of the military. Without the shot or an approved exemption, the service members who continue to refuse will be forced out of the armed forces.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Each branch of the military has fielded thousands of requests for religious exemptions since the announcement was made and military officials are struggling to work through the backlog. While some requests have been denied, many of those are being appealed. No requests for a religious exemption to the shot has been approved.&nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>The Daily Wire is one of America\u2019s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a&nbsp;<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/subscribe\"><em>member<\/em><\/a><em>.<\/p>\n<p><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz led a group of eight GOP senators and 38 Republican House members to file an amicus brief in support of 26 Navy SEALs and other service members seeking religious exemptions from President Joe Biden\u2019s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.The friend of the court letter in the case of U.S. Navy Seals v. Biden argued that both the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) and the First Amendment require the federal government to allow exemptions for the sincerely held religious beliefs of Armed Forces personnel.\u201cReligious freedom is fundamental to every American\u2019s liberty,\u201d Cruz tweeted on Monday.My colleagues and I filed an amicus brief in U.S. Navy Seals v. Biden in support of 26 service members with religious objections to Biden\u2019s vaccine mandate.Religious freedom is fundamental to every American\u2019s liberty.https:\/\/t.co\/wlcpHoVLW9\u2014 Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) December 20, 2021The other senators who joined the brief included Rick Scott (R-FL), Mike Lee (R-UT), James Lankford (R-OK), Steve Daines (R-MT), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Mike Braun (R-IN), and Roger Marshall (R-KS). The 38 members of the House of Representatives were led by Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA).\u201cPlaintiffs\u2019 religious liberty and the government\u2019s asserted interest in protecting our service members from COVID-19 need not be in conflict, especially where, as here, the individuals seeking an exemption are willing to adopt non-vaccination measures to protect themselves and others from the spread of COVID-19,\u201d the brief said.\u201cThey are only in conflict here because Defendants refuse to accommodate Plaintiffs\u2019 religious objections even as they accommodate those who will not receive the vaccine for non-religious reasons. This violates RFRA by substantially burdening Plaintiffs\u2019 religious beliefs without a compelling reason, and violates the First Amendment\u2019s guarantee that government not discriminate against religion,\u201d it added.The letter also noted the military members seek the same freedom from encroachment \u201cby the very government\u201d they have sworn to protect.\u201cOur men and women in uniform have fought to protect the freedoms that every American, regardless of belief, enjoys. Now they ask this Court to protect their religious freedom from encroachment by the very government they have sworn to protect with their lives,\u201d the amicus brief said.The SEAL members\u2019 \u2013 including members who are Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, or Protestant\u2013\u201csincerely held religious beliefs forbid each of them from receiving the COVID-19 vaccine for a variety of reasons based upon their Christian faith as revealed through the Holy Bible and prayerful discernment,\u201d the lawsuit says.\u201cPlaintiffs believe that receiving a COVID-19 vaccine that was tested, developed, or produced using aborted fetal cell lines would force them to violate their sincerely held religious beliefs by causing them to participate in the abortion enterprise, which they believe to be immoral and highly offensive to God,\u201d it added.As The Daily Wire previously reported:The Pentagon\u00a0announced\u00a0in August that COVID-19 vaccinations would be mandatory for all members of the military. Without the shot or an approved exemption, the service members who continue to refuse will be forced out of the armed forces.Each branch of the military has fielded thousands of requests for religious exemptions since the announcement was made and military officials are struggling to work through the backlog. While some requests have been denied, many of those are being appealed. No requests for a religious exemption to the shot has been approved.\u00a0The Daily Wire is one of America\u2019s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a\u00a0member.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":325,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1137067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1137067","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/325"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1137067"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1137067\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1137067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1137067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1137067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}