The State Department came under fire on Monday for plastering their official website’s homepage with a speech made by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on October 11th touting his Christian faith. In the process, the State Department has violated the constitutional principle of separation of state and religion.
President and CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Rachel Laser, said “He cannot use his government position to impose his faith on the rest of us—that is a fundamental violation of the separation of religion and government.”
Pompeo, who has a long record of religious bigotry against Muslims, delivered the “Being a Christian Leader” speech last week at a gathering in Nashville, Tennessee of the American Association of Christian Counselors. The trip was funded by US taxpayers.
The State Department changed the headline of the speech on their homepage to “Secretary Pompeo at the America Association of Christian Counselors” on Monday afternoon after hours of criticism. The speech was entirely moved off the homepage by Monday night.
Pompeo, an evangelical Christian said, “I know some people in the media will break out the pitchforks when they hear that I ask God for direction in my work.”
