{"id":1627642,"date":"2022-08-31T06:47:40","date_gmt":"2022-08-31T10:47:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1627642"},"modified":"2022-08-31T06:47:59","modified_gmt":"2022-08-31T10:47:59","slug":"22-states-file-legal-brief-in-support-of-navy-seals-still-battling-bidens-covid-jab-mandate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/22-states-file-legal-brief-in-support-of-navy-seals-still-battling-bidens-covid-jab-mandate\/","title":{"rendered":"22 States File Legal Brief In Support Of Navy SEALs Still Battling Biden\u2019s Covid Jab 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\">32<\/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%2F22-states-file-legal-brief-in-support-of-navy-seals-still-battling-bidens-covid-jab-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=1627642&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>Twenty-two states took legal action on Monday in support of several U.S. Navy SEALs seeking religious exemptions from President Joe Biden\u2019s Covid jab mandate for military personnel.<\/p>\n<p>Filed in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the <a href=\"https:\/\/files.constantcontact.com\/d3e83e11901\/3364b699-b6ba-43f6-9e39-a4d36eada921.pdf?rdr=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">amicus brief<\/a> encourages the court not to afford deference to the federal government over its continued denial of religious exemptions for military service members such as the Navy SEALs, with the near-two dozen states citing the Biden administration\u2019s repeated violations of federal law throughout the Covid pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Administration\u2019s near total denial rate for religious exemptions suggests\u2014just standing on its own\u2014that the Administration has cast aside [The Religious Freedom Restoration Act\u2019s] demands to pursue a political decision to mandate widespread vaccination,\u201d the brief reads. \u201cThe Administration appears to be using another \u2018work-around\u2019\u2014overstepping statutory limits to achieve a higher vaccination rate, as it did with the eviction moratorium and with its vaccine mandates.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While the states proclaim that there are \u201careas of particularly sensitive government interests\u201d and that courts \u201cshould respect the professional judgments of experienced officials,\u201d they note that \u201ceven when government interests are compelling, religious exercise demands respect too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe amici States have a powerful interest in holding true the balance between pursuing important state interests and protecting sincerely held religious beliefs. Respect for policymakers\u2019 judgments should not be permitted to mask abuse of religious freedom,\u201d they said. <\/p>\n<p>In summarizing their case, the states go on to emphasize the importance of federalism and how \u201cthe [Biden] Administration has fallen short in respecting the limitations on its authority\u201d over the course of the pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Administration has acted despite legal limitations and then asked for deference to its judgments,\u201d the brief reads. \u201cBut it is \u2018not enough\u2019 to \u2018defer to [an official\u2019s] determination\u2019 about when an individual\u2019s religious liberties must give way, particularly where history provides good reason to question that determination.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis Court should not afford deference to the federal government,\u201d it concluded.<\/p>\n<p>When announcing the brief\u2019s filing, Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch championed the decision to support the SEALs, while also knocking the Biden administration for its continued purging of unvaccinated U.S. military personnel.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese brave men and women risk their lives to defend our freedom and they should not be required to check their own freedom at the door because they serve in our military \u2013 especially where the Administration has demonstrated that its demand here is due to blind adherence to a political agenda,\u201d she said in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ago.state.ms.us\/2022\/08\/29\/ag-fitch-leads-22-states-in-support-of-navy-seals-religious-liberty-082922\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">statement<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares echoed similar sentiments, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oag.state.va.us\/media-center\/news-releases\/2439-august-30-2022-attorney-general-miyares-joins-coalition-of-states-supporting-religious-exemptions-of-navy-seals\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">saying<\/a> the Biden administration \u201chas continually disrespected boundaries throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNavy SEALs are some of our best and brightest, willing to sacrifice their lives to protect our freedoms. Those who have filed religious exemptions for the COVID-19 vaccine deserve to be heard and taken seriously,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Other state attorneys general that signed onto the amicus brief include those representing Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming.<\/p>\n<p>Originally <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/unvaxxed-navy-sailors-face-deplorable-living-conditions-inability-leave-while-religious-exemptions-pend\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">filed in November<\/a> by the First Liberty Institute on behalf of 35 active-duty Navy SEALs and three reservists, the case before the Fifth Circuit has \u201csince been amended to extend to a class action lawsuit encompassing all Navy service members seeking religious accommodation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As reported by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/unvaxxed-navy-sailors-face-deplorable-living-conditions-inability-leave-while-religious-exemptions-pend\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Fox News<\/a>, with the case \u201ccontinuing to be litigated in lower courts around the country,\u201d unvaccinated SEALs and other sailors \u201cwho have not yet been terminated by the U.S. government are stuck in limbo\u201d and being forced into \u201cless-than-desirable alternative housing by the military or barred from traveling outside their base.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Several of those who have been forcibly segregated from their fellow servicemembers as a result of their decision to refuse the jab have since been subject to horrid living conditions, with one sailor who was moved to the berthing barge of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier describing the environment as \u201cdeplorable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is mold everywhere and the barge\u2019s toilets back up and leak,\u201d the sailor said. \u201cThe water leaks out of the base of the toilet and collects near my rack and out into the hall. On bad days, it goes into the berthings on the other side. The leaks seem to be sewage\u2014it smells like sewage and looks like it too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNeedless to say, I do not feel comfortable or safe in this environment and I have contacted mental health services multiple times,\u201d the sailor added.<\/p>\n<p>To date, only \u201c47 religious accommodation requests have been approved [by the Navy], and 4,251 requests remain pending,\u201d according to the legal brief filed by the 22 states.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n<p>\n  Shawn Fleetwood is a Staff Writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He also serves as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-comments mt-30 mt-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-comments-container d-flex flex-column align-items-center py-30\">\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"110\" height=\"106\" src=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/fdrlst-mark.svg\" class=\"img-fluid mb-20\" alt=\"The Federalist logo eagle mark\" \/>    <\/p>\n<p>Unlock commenting by joining the Federalist Community.<\/p>\n<p>    <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/plans\/pricing\/\" class=\"btn btn-on-white\">Subscribe<\/a>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Twenty-two states took legal action on Monday in support of several U.S. Navy SEALs seeking religious exemptions from President Joe Biden\u2019s Covid jab mandate for military personnel. Filed in the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"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-1627642","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\/1627642","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\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1627642"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1627642\/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=1627642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1627642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1627642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}