July 15, 2026
AFA Action applauds Trump’s push to restore the Establishment Clause and protect religious liberty
TUPELO, Miss. — Last May, President Donald J. Trump established the Religious Liberty Commission to advise and report to the President on opportunities to “identify emerging threats to religious liberty, uphold Federal laws that protect all citizens’ full participation in a pluralistic democracy, and protect the free exercise of religion.” In June, the Commission delivered its draft report to the President and invited public comment.
AFA Action, the governmental affairs affiliate of the American Family Association (AFA), submitted a public comment applauding the President and the Commission for their tireless efforts to protect religious liberty. AFA also recommended two additions to the report.
“For decades, state and local officials have been intimidated by threats of Establishment Clause lawsuits from left-wing activists,” observed AFA Action Senior Legal Fellow Trey Dellinger. “The result is a public square that is often hostile to religion. The President and the Religious Liberty Commission could take no greater step to protect religious liberty than to help restore the Establishment Clause to its original meaning. That, coupled with strengthening federal religious liberty protections under the Free Exercise Clause, would mark a new day for religious protections in our country. Today we urge the President and the Commission to take these courageous actions to protect Americans’ first liberty.”
In a formal comment authored by Dellinger, AFA Action urged the Department of Justice to issue guidance clarifying the proper originalist understanding of the Establishment Clause. For several decades, activist judges have perverted the original understanding of that clause. This weaponized misreading of the Establishment Clause has been used to purge a wide array of religious practices from the public square, such as displays of the Ten Commandments and prayers at public high school sporting events. As constitutional scholars and both Justices Thomas and Gorsuch have stated, the Establishment Clause’s text and history show that it was originally understood to prohibit the federal government from establishing a national religion. Further, the Establishment Clause was a reservation of state power over issues related to religious establishment. Like the 10th Amendment, it was a protection of state autonomy, rather than a protection of individual rights. Thus, the Establishment Clause could not logically be “incorporated” through the 14th Amendment to restrict state governments’ ability to legislate in this area.
AFA Action’s public comment further related that, even if the Establishment Clause continues to be applied against the states, that clause, properly understood, prohibits only state coercion of religious orthodoxy and of financial support by force of law and threat of penalty as exemplified by the founding-era state establishments.
Second, AFA Action urged the Commission to ask the President to instruct the Department of Justice to support litigation challenging the constitutionality of legal precedents that violate an originalist understanding of the Establishment Clause.
AFA Action is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to advancing biblical family values in society and government by shaping public policy through education and advocacy.The mission of AFA Action is to inform and mobilize individuals to strengthen the biblical foundations of America by persuading individuals with the truth of the Gospel, challenging the lost to repent, promoting societal values that are consistent with Scripture, restraining evil and exposing the works of darkness, motivating people to take a stand on cultural and moral issues, and encouraging Christians to bear witness to the world the love of Jesus Christ. Find AFA Action Alerts here.
For more information on the American Family Association, visitwww.afa.net or follow AFA on Facebook or X.
For more information on AFA Action, visitwww.afaaction.net or follow AFA Action on Facebook or X.
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To interview an AFA or AFA Action spokesperson, contact Hamilton Strategies, Media@HamiltonStrategies.com, Beth Bogucki, 610.584.1096, ext. 105, or Daniel Moyer, ext. 104.
