PROGRAM ON FREEDOM

OF RELIGION AND
BELIEF

October 16, 2019

VIA EMAIL & CERTIFIED U.S. MAIL

The Honorable Steve Linick
Inspector General
U.S. Department of State
Office of the Inspector General
SA-39
1700 North Moore Street
Arlington, VA 22209
[email protected]

Re: Request for Investigation Regarding Unconstitutional Use of

State Department Resources in Connection with Secretary
AMERICAN CIVIL
LIBERTIES UNION Pompeo’s October 11 Speech

PROGRAM ON FREEDOM OF Dear Inspector General Linick:

RELIGION AND BELIEF
915 15TH STREET, NW, 6TH FL.
WASHINGTON, DC 20005-2313 We write to request an investigation into the unconstitutional use of State
T/202.675.2330
F/202.546.0738
Department resources in connection with a speech delivered to the American
WWW.ACLU.ORG Association of Christian Counselors on October 11, 2019, by Secretary of State
DANIEL MACH
Michael Pompeo. Entitled “Being a Christian Leader,” the speech was—for all
DIRECTOR intents and purposes—a Christian sermon and was promoted extensively
NATIONAL OFFICE
through the State Department’s official Facebook and Twitter accounts, as well
125 BROAD STREET, 18TH FL. as the Department’s website.
NEW YORK, NY 10004-2400
T/212.549.2500
Background
OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS
SUSAN N. HERMAN Secretary Pompeo’s speech was overtly proselytizing. Although the title made
PRESIDENT this proselytizing purpose clear, he went out of his way dispel any remaining
ANTHONY D. ROMERO doubt that he intended to sermonize: “[M]y focus too, to be quite candid, is not
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR just on being a leader. I learned how to lead at whatever level I’m blessed with
during my time at West Point and other experiences, but I want to talk today
about being a Christian leader. I learned that through a very different
experience, an experience with God and my own personal faith in Christ.”

He then revealed the origin of his “walk with Christ” and discussed at length
“what it means to be a Christian leader . . . in three areas”—disposition,
dialogue, and decision-making. Throughout his address, Secretary Pompeo
repeatedly promoted particular Christian beliefs, quoting scripture and urging
attendees to conduct themselves in accordance with his interpretation of biblical
tenets. Examples of his remarks include:

1
 • “Scripture calls us to be ‘transformed by the renewing of [our] minds.’ And so I keep a
Bible open on my desk, and I try every morning to try and get in a little bit of time with
the Book. I need my mind renewed with truth each day. And part of that truth is, as my
son reminds me, is to be humble. Proverbs says, ‘With the humble is wisdom.’”
• “Before you can help others, you need to have the right approach to yourself. This is
where I get to the first point I wanted to talk about, which is disposition . . . what’s the
attitude with which we approach each of these challenges, all the things that we see in the
world? How you carry yourself is the first arena of Christian leadership.”
• “But when there is failure, when the people close to me misfire, I don’t strip away their
responsibilities. I don’t cut them out of meetings. I keep them in the fold. I keep giving
them important work. That’s what Christ does for us; we have an obligation to do the
same.”
• “We should all remember – we should all remember that we are imperfect servants
serving a perfect God who constantly forgives us each and every day. He keeps using us
. . . he keeps using us to do a higher work.”
• “For a moment, back to the Book of James: ‘Everyone should be quick to listen, and slow
to speak.’”
• “This comes through so clearly in Proverbs, which say, ‘The one who states his case first
seems right, until the other comes and examines him.’”
• “After I’ve collected data, I feel like I have the seasoning to then be able to begin to speak
fundamental basic, simple, small ‘t’ truths. Colossians talks about this. It says, ‘Let your
speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to
answer to each person.’ I know this is a critical part of what so many of you do, whether
it’s pointing those you counsel back to the truth of the Scripture, or giving them a hard
wake-up call over their trespasses.”
• “But no matter whether it’s your family’s finances or you’re responsible for protecting
taxpayer funds and being a good steward, as I am today, the Bible calls us to be faithful in
our stewardship of whatever it is that we have been privileged to hold onto, no matter how
much or how little. We have to be faithful in every single circumstance.”
• “Think of that famous parable of the talents. The servant called ‘good and faithful’ used
what he had wisely.”
• “But no matter what comes before you, I pray you’ll help hurting people stay immersed in
God’s Word.”
• “And I pray you’ll do these things not out of your own strength, but by relying on, as Paul
says, ‘Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we are able to ask or to
imagine.’”

The State Department actively promoted Secretary Pompeo’s religious speech and urged the
public to watch it. On its official Facebook page, for example, the Department teased the event in
advance, noting that it would be streamed live on both Facebook and the Department’s own
website, with this posting and others:
2
Even after the event concluded, officials continued to use State Department resources to
encourage the public to view the sermon: Over the weekend, the Department’s website
prominently featured the speech. As recently as Monday evening, visitors to the site were greeted
with this image:

3
Those who clicked on the image were taken to another page on the site bearing the URL,
https://www.state.gov/being-a-christian-leader/. That page features a full video and transcript of
Secretary Pompeo’s address. Moreover, since the event, the Department has devoted multiple
Twitter and Facebook posts to promoting the video and posted it on the Department’s official
YouTube page. 1

Legal Concerns and Request for Investigation

The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment “mandates governmental neutrality between
religion and religion, and between religion and nonreligion.” 2 As this matter illustrates, the
Framers had good reason for enshrining this protection in the Constitution.

First, “[w]hen the power, prestige and financial support of government is placed behind a
particular religious belief, the indirect coercive pressure upon religious minorities to conform to
the prevailing officially approved religion is plain.” 3 While those who work for the government
may participate in religious activities and promote religious beliefs in their individual, personal
capacities, the Department’s official sponsorship of Secretary Pompeo’s speech went well
beyond what is permitted by the First Amendment.

Secretary Pompeo delivered a Christian sermon under the auspices of the State Department. He
appeared in his official capacity, using his title as Secretary of the Department of State and
commandeering the resources of his government office to promote his appearance, broadcast the
speech live, and disseminate a video of it afterward—all via the Department’s official social
media channels and website. These are not appropriate or lawful uses of the Department’s online
and technical resources or employee time.

By placing its imprimatur on Secretary Pompeo’s proselytizing speech, the Department has
conveyed to non-Christians across the country, including adherents of minority faiths and non-
theists, the discriminatory and constitutionally repugnant message that they are and will remain
“outsiders, not full members of the political community” until they adopt the religious beliefs
favored by the government. 4 Indeed, the Department’s unstated but obvious message that non-
Christians are second class is likely to be understood around the world as yet another
confirmation that the U.S. government appears to have abandoned the Constitution’s promise of
religious freedom for all.

Second, the Establishment Clause protects not only the integrity of government and the
conscience of those who do not subscribe to the majority faith’s beliefs, but also the integrity of
religion itself, preserving faith systems’ autonomy and independence from the government. 5

1
Screenshots of these online activities are attached to this letter and can also be provided by
email, flash drive, or other means upon request.
2
McCreary Cty. v. ACLU of Ky., 545 U.S. 844, 860 (2005) (internal quotation marks omitted).
3
Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421, 431 (1962).
4
See Santa Fe Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Doe, 530 U.S. 290, 309 (2000) (internal quotation marks
omitted).
5
See, e.g., Lee v. Weisman, 505 U.S. 577, 589 (1992) (“The design of the Constitution is that
preservation and transmission of religious beliefs and worship is a responsibility and a choice
4
James Madison, the architect of the First Amendment, recognized that “religion and Government
will both exist in greater purity the less they are mixed together.” 6 Like many Founders, he
believed that “a union of government and religion tends to destroy government and to degrade
religion.” 7 This is true even for government officials’ preferred faith. As Justice Blackmun put it:
“The favored religion may be compromised as political figures reshape the religion's beliefs for
their own purposes . . . Keeping religion in the hands of private groups minimizes state intrusion
on religious choice and best enables each religion to flourish according to the zeal of its
adherents and the appeal of its dogma.” 8

To these ends, the Establishment Clause prohibits the government from taking sides on questions
of religious doctrine, practice, or conduct. 9 Government officials may not act as “arbiters of
scriptural interpretation,” 10 and they certainly may not use their official positions and
government resources to opine on what constitutes a good Christian or “what it means to be a
Christian leader.” But that is exactly what Secretary Pompeo and the Department did here. They
usurped the role of religious leaders and faith communities by promoting a particular, officially
sanctioned view of scripture and the way that Christian leaders should conduct themselves. This,
too, violates the Establishment Clause.

committed to the private sphere, which itself is promised freedom to pursue that mission. It must
not be forgotten then, that while concern must be given to define the protection granted to an
objector or a dissenting nonbeliever, these same Clauses exist to protect religion from
government interference.”).
6
Letter from James Madison to Edward Livingston (July 10, 1822), in James Madison on
Religious Liberty 82, 83 (Robert S. Alley ed., 1985).
7
Engel, 370 U.S. at 431.
8
Lee, 505 U.S. at 608–09 (Blackmun, J., concurring) (internal quotation marks omitted). Accord
Engel, 370 U.S. at 431-32 (“The Establishment Clause thus stands as an expression of principle
on the part of the Founders of our Constitution that religion is too personal, too sacred, too holy,
to permit its ‘unhallowed perversion’ by a civil magistrate.”).
9
See, e.g., Presbyterian Church in U.S. v. Mary Elizabeth Blue Hull Mem’l Presbyterian
Church, 393 U.S. 440, 444 n.3 (1969) (declining to decide a church property dispute that would
have required the court to determine whether one party had “deviat[ed] from the faith and
practice of the Presbyterian Church in the United States”); Watson v. Jones, 80 U.S. 679, 733
(1872) (noting that it is constitutionally inappropriate for courts to address matters involving
“theological controversy, church discipline, ecclesiastical government, or the conformity of the
members of the church to the standard of morals”); Commack Self-Serv. Kosher Meats, Inc. v.
Weiss, 294 F.3d 415, 426 (2d Cir. 2002) (“[B]ecause the challenged laws interpret ‘kosher’ as
synonymous with the views of one branch, those of Orthodox Judaism, the State has effectively
aligned itself with one side of an internal debate within Judaism. This it may not do.”); see also,
e.g., Sch. Dist. of Abington Twp. v. Schempp, 374 U.S. 203, 243 (1963) (Brennan, J., concurring)
(“[I]n order to give effect to the First Amendment’s purpose of requiring on the part of all organs
of government a strict neutrality toward theological questions, courts should not undertake to
decide such questions.”).
10
See Thomas v. Rev. Bd. of Ind. Emp’t Sec. Div., 450 U.S. 707, 716 (1981).
5
Because the United States is more religiously diverse than ever, it is more important than ever
that the government respect the Constitution’s prohibition on official favor for, or endorsement
of, some faiths over others, and religion over non-religion. If Secretary Pompeo wants to deliver
proselytizing speeches of this nature, he must do so in his personal capacity—without the aid of
the State Department.

We respectfully request that your office initiate an investigation to identify all misuses of State
Department resources in connection with the October 11 event, including the improper use of
online and technological resources, employee time, and any other expenditures (whether
monetary or in-kind) that may have occurred. 11 We also ask that you identify additional
procedures that should be adopted by the Department to prevent any future misappropriation of
official resources for the purpose of promoting religion. In the meantime, please do not hesitate
to contact us if you have any additional questions regarding the matters discussed in this letter.

Sincerely,

Daniel Mach

Heather L. Weaver
ACLU Program on Freedom of
Religion and Belief
915 15th St., NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 675-2330
[email protected]
[email protected]

11
We also intend to submit a request under the Freedom of Information Act to gather additional
information regarding the Department’s breach of the Establishment Clause.
6
CC VIA EMAIL & CERTIFIED U.S. MAIL
The Honorable James Risch
Chairman
U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
423 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-6225

The Honorable Robert Menendez

Ranking Member
U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
423 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-6225

The Honorable Eliot Engel

Chairman
U.S. House of Representatives
Committee on Foreign Affairs
2170 Rayburn House Office Building,
Washington, D.C. 20515

The Honorable Michael McCaul

Ranking Member
U.S. House of Representatives
Committee on Foreign Affairs
2170 Rayburn House Office Building,
Washington, D.C. 20515