Eric Baxter

Senior Counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. Leader of the [Baxter Family Bluegrass] Band.

[Eric Baxter @esbax]

A hearing for this case is expected later this year. https://t.co/kzdBAEXJ0p

[Eric Baxter @esbax]

With the help of @becketfund, two retired Chiefs of Chaplains for the U.S. Army filed a friend-of-the-court brief yesterday, urging the Fourth Circuit to halt a Virginia policy that could leave troops without the spiritual care they need.

[Eric Baxter @esbax]

We argue that Locke does not apply to the military chaplaincy. Because the government has a constitutional duty to provide chaplains to our servicemembers, Virginia can’t exclude the exact religious education required for chaplains, simply because that education is religious. https://t.co/XPIvU4jecp

[Eric Baxter @esbax]

We are glad the Court made clear that state bureaucrats cannot misuse investigative powers to pry into a ministry’s beliefs, donor lists, and internal religious decisions. If they do, ministries do not have to endure the full weight of an investigation before turning to a federal judge for protection.

[Eric Baxter @esbax]

The Supreme Court just ruled unanimously that First Choice Women’s Resource Centers—a pro-life Christian ministry serving women facing unplanned pregnancies—can seek protection in federal court after New Jersey’s Attorney General launched an investigation that threatened their religious mission.

[Eric Baxter @esbax]

That would have allowed state officials across the country free rein to probe religious ministries with sweeping investigations designed to pressure them into silence.