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Hosting us today, and thank you for establishing this commission. It was just 13 months ago when we stood in the Rose Garden. Now, it's an incredibly beautiful Rose Garden today. We just stood there, and we talked about religious liberty, and that no President in our history has stood more for God than this President. He has been unashamed to speak the word of Jesus. He's been unashamed to speak up for all faiths, and he established this commission so that we would assure Americans that religious [clears throat] liberty—that this great inheritance from our founding fathers—would continue for another 250 years. And, Mr. President, we believe this will be one of your greatest legacies, and you happen to be the perfect President to be here in the 250th celebration.
The question is: What is religious liberty? It's our conscience. It's that little voice inside of us that tells us right from wrong. It's that voice that, when we're in trouble, we can talk to in our quiet moments. It's that voice that, when we feel unloved and alone, can comfort us through a higher power. When governments can take away your religious liberty, they're putting their hand in your heart and taking everything you believe in. And if governments can do that, then they become God.
The President spoke earlier today of the communist threat in this country. We know what communists do around the world. They remove God. They close the churches. They punish the believers. And so, this is so important at this point in time in history. We didn't know about this communist movement a year ago when we were here, but this is the perfect time to stand up and say to America: You have been given this great inheritance, and you deserve to have religious liberty.
The key is that after 103 witnesses, after 7 months of testimony, after 200 pages of testimony that we're delivering today, we found there was one constant theme. The overwhelming majority of our witnesses said that they were attacked and punished, and what was used against them was one phrase that's not in the Constitution. And that phrase is "the separation of church and state." The Left has used that one phrase—that was one line out of one of hundreds of letters by Thomas Jefferson—to batter and hammer people of faith for the last 70 to 80 years. And this report will speak very clearly that we want to be sure Americans understand that they cannot be attacked by that phrase any longer.
So, we have 12 recommendations. I'll read the first six. My great Vice Chairman will read the next six, and then members will speak to these issues.
So, Mr. President, recommendation number one: Instruct the Department of Justice to issue guidance clarifying the proper understanding of the Establishment Clause and the separation of church and state.
Number two: The Department of Justice, Department of Health and Human Services, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission shall issue "Know Your Rights" posters for students, parents, public teachers, administrators, religious leaders, religious institution health care workers, and military service members.
Ben Carson, I'll let you finish with the remaining seven.
>> Six.
>> Six. Go ahead.
Combat anti-Semitism through enforcement of civil rights laws, litigation of credible allegations of anti-Semitic discrimination and violence, and civic education.
Protect religious Americans from government-led litigation targeting their free exercise.
Repeal the Johnson Amendment.
Order the Department of War to streamline and improve the religious accommodation process.
Continue efforts to restore the retirement or re-enlistment eligibility of service members who lost employment, health insurance, pensions, and other benefits because of their religious beliefs about COVID and vaccines.
And lastly, honor the courage of religious liberty heroes through creating a Presidential Medal of Religious Liberty and First Freedom Hero Awards to recognize Americans who stand up for religious freedom and play an indispensable role in protecting citizens' constitutional rights.
>> And, Mr. President, I just want to thank you, first of all, for appointing us to this commission, and secondly, for your steadfast dedication to religious liberty. I don't think anybody has done as much as you have—maybe not everybody else put together. And some people in the beginning thought it was just fake, it was just politics, but you've been steadfast throughout the whole thing. And it's a big part of America. Our founding document says that our rights come from our, and not from government. And people who try to divorce us from that heritage: Do they realize that that's in our founding document? Do they realize that our Pledge of Allegiance says, "we are one nation under God"? Do they realize that many courtrooms in the land on the wall it says, "In God We Trust"? That every coin in their pocket, every bill in their wallet says, "In God We Trust"? So, if it's in all those places, but we're not supposed to talk about it, maybe we need to see a psychiatrist.