美国联邦法官约翰·克罗南周一驳回了一起关于特朗普宗教自由委员会成员构成的诉讼[1]。进步型跨信仰联盟以及印度教、穆斯林和锡克教组织曾联合起诉，指控该委员会成员压倒性地保守基督教导向，缺乏法律要求的观点平衡[1]。
法官认定虽然联邦法律要求咨询委员会必须具有观点平衡，但并未规定具体方式，因此特朗普在选择成员时拥有"广泛的自由裁量权"[1]。克罗南法官指出委员会包括"至少五种不同宗教的信徒"，包括一名犹太成员和多个基督教教派的成员[1]。
跨信仰联盟主席保罗·布兰代斯·劳森布什牧师随后表态称，"今天的驳回错误地忽视了委员会特别青睐一种狭隘的宗教和意识形态观点"[1]。该委员会在6月发布的草案报告中对政教分离的理解提出了质疑[1]。
A federal judge has rejected a legal challenge to the makeup of President Trump's Religious Liberty Commission, ruling that while federal law requires advisory committees to maintain balanced viewpoints, it does not specify how to achieve such balance, thereby granting the president broad discretion in selecting members. [1] The dismissal came from U.S. District Judge John P. Cronan, who rejected arguments from the Progressive Multi-Faith Alliance and organizations representing Hindu, Muslim, and Sikh communities that the commission's membership overwhelmingly favored conservative Christian perspectives. [1]
The plaintiffs contended that the commission's composition violated federal requirements for viewpoint balance, but the judge determined that Trump possessed sufficient latitude in appointing committee members despite these statutory provisions. [1] Responding to the dismissal, Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, president of the Multi-Faith Alliance, criticized the ruling, stating that "today's dismissal wrongly ignores that the commission has uniquely favored a narrow religious and ideological viewpoint." [1] Judge Cronan countered this characterization by noting that the commission includes "adherents of at least five different religions," comprising one Jewish member alongside members from multiple Christian denominations. [1]
The Religious Liberty Commission released a draft report in June that challenged decades of understanding regarding the separation of church and state. [1]