A federal judge in New York dismissed a lawsuit filed by an interfaith coalition challenging the composition of President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission. The plaintiffs, including the Interfaith Alliance along with Hindu, Muslim, and Sikh advocacy groups, contended that the commission lacked the ideological and religious balance required by federal law for advisory bodies.
Judge John P. Cronan ruled that while federal statute requires advisory commissions to maintain balanced viewpoints, the law does not specify how such balance must be achieved. The judge determined that the president possesses substantial discretion in appointing commission members and that the plaintiffs had not satisfied legal standards to proceed with their case. Cronan noted that the commission exhibits diversity in other dimensions, such as including both clergy and non-clergy members, and stated it contains representatives from at least five different religious traditions.
The plaintiffs argued the commission was imbalanced because it consisted primarily of conservative Christian members alongside one Orthodox Jewish rabbi. They pointed to public statements from several commissioners questioning the constitutional separation of church and state and expressing support for characterizing America as a Judeo-Christian nation. These concerns appeared substantiated, according to the plaintiffs, when the commission released a draft report in June that challenged contemporary understandings of church-state separation and proposed creating “bridges” between religious and governmental spheres.
The Interfaith Alliance, through its president and CEO, responded to the dismissal by asserting that the commission privileges a narrow religious viewpoint and perpetuates what the organization characterizes as Christian nationalism. The group stated its commitment to continued advocacy for what it describes as genuine religious freedom and indicated intention to monitor the commission’s activities going forward.
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