GOP House members sent a letter Monday to Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough expressing their concerns about the removal of a cross bearing the emblems of the military branches and the words "Remember our Veterans" from the Central Texas Veterans Heath Care System's Austin clinic.
"Reports indicate CTVHCS took this step following a complaint that the display somehow violated the U.S. Constitution," the letter from 16 Republicans said. "CTVHCS's decision exhibits remarkable disregard for the First Amendment and hostility toward basic military history and the traditions of the United States. We call on you to immediately reverse this decision."
According to the VA website, CTVHCS serves more than 252,000 veterans in 39 Texas counties and has two main medical centers in Temple and Waco, as well as nine other clinics throughout the state.
It covers 35,000 square-miles and includes 10 congressional districts.
In 2022, the organization reported treating 116,359 veterans including 5,393 inpatient admissions and 1.3 million outpatient visits, according to its website.
Director Michael Kiefer was appointed in 2019, and he oversees 4,400 employees with an annual budget of about $1.2 billion, according to the agency.
The Austin Clinic is a "stand-alone multispecialty clinic offers primary care and specialty health services, including a chiropractic clinic, vision care (optometry), dentistry, oncology, treatment for traumatic brain injuries (TBI), foot care (podiatry), and more," according to the website.
The Washington Times reported that CTVHCS public affairs representative William Negron told the news outlet that the cross was taken down after the Military Religious Freedom Foundation sent them a demand letter.
That organization's founder and President Michael Weinstein said the cross was a "nonsecular display of Christian triumphalism and supremacy."
In the letter, Weinstein said the cross violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, agency regulations, and rules relating to symbols from the Department of Defense, according to the report.
"The greatest members of our founding understood that the religious and moral nature of America's heritage was critical to this Republic's preservation and to our veterans and men and women in the Armed Forces," the congressional letter read. "Attempts to sterilize the public square — in this case a clinic that provides medical care to the veterans that sacrificed for our Republic — of all symbols of Christianity, flies in the face of the very founding of our nation … out of respect for the veterans who have borne the battle for this Republic, its principles, and the freedom it guards — we request that you immediately return the cross to its original display."
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