A group of US Senators has written a letter (PDF) asking US Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson not only to “restore justice” to unjustly punished Colonel Leland Bohannon, but also to explain how the Air Force’s actions comport with its — and her — stated support for religious liberty [emphasis added]:

We therefore ask that you, as Secretary of the Air Force, clarify the branch’s position on religious liberty. We ask that you instruct the Air Force to issue formal guidance and provide adequate training to commanders so that they know how to properly and respectfully address the religious liberty rights of their subordinates.

Lastly, we request that you investigate the proceedings surrounding Col. Bohannon’s request for religious accommodation and take all appropriate steps to have the substantiated EO complaint reversed and any unfavorable note in Col. Bohannon’s service record removed.

Col. Bohannon has suffered severely on account of the EO investigator’s mishandling of his religious liberty rights. The Air Force ows it to him to see that justice is restored, along with his good name.

The tone of the three-page letter is not insignificant. There is an impact of the Air Force’s actions even beyond the unjust damage done to Col Bohannon and his career. As the Senators note, the US Air Force has created perceptions of how it treats the religious beliefs of its troops — its own written regulations notwithstanding. How the Air Force responds to Congress and to Col Bohannon will indelibly mark its institutional treatment of military religious freedom.

Also at LifeSite News.

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