Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), along with several of his colleagues, recently signed an amicus brief that offered full support to the Navy SEALs presently suing President Biden and his administration for the mandatory COVID-19 vaccine for the military.
Cruz led seven Republican senators while House Republican Conference Chair Mike Johnson of Louisiana led 38 Republican House representatives in the amicus brief effort.
The Republican legislators wrote the amicus brief in support of 26 Navy SEALs, along with other service members, who have argued that the First Amendment and Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) provided ample protection against the vaccine mandate from the Navy.
According to the lawmakers, “plaintiffs’ religious liberty and the government’s asserted interest in protecting our service members from COVID-19 need not be in conflict.”
“Individuals seeking an exemption are willing to adopt non-vaccination measures to protect themselves and others from the spread of COVID-19,” the GOP legislators continued.
The lawmakers also noted that other individuals had been granted exceptions for non-religious reasons, which is precisely why the refusal to allow exceptions on the basis of religious freedom “violates RFRA” through the substantial violation of the Navy service members’ religious beliefs “without a compelling reason.”
Moreover, their rights are also violated through the provisions of the First Amendment, which guarantees that the government will “not discriminate against religion.”
Consequently, the vaccine mandate effectively forces the Navy service members, or individuals who have spent their entire life devoted “to the protection of the country,” to choose between their financial well-being and their sincere religious convictions.
Previously, Republicans warned the Biden administration that a “grave mistake” was being made through issuing a military-wide mandate for the COVID vaccine.
Representative Darrell Issa, who hails from California, is the father of a major in the Judge Advocate General Corps, a major “who honorably served our nation in a foreign combat theater.”
Through that experience, “you can fully and uniquely appreciate the sacrifices that our veterans make for America,” Issa informed Biden in a letter, which was subsequently acquired by the Fox News network.
