May 1, 2025
Commission will help defend Americans’ First Amendment rights.
(Washington, DC): Today, on the National Day of Prayer, President Donald Trump signed an executive order defending religious freedom and appointing Ethics and Public Policy Center President, Ryan T. Anderson, to the newly created Religious Liberty Commission.
President Trump begins the executive order by stating that, “It shall be the policy of the executive branch to vigorously enforce the historic and robust protections for religious liberty enshrined in Federal law.”
The commission will examine the state of religious freedom across America and examine emerging threats to this freedom.
“I’m honored to have this opportunity and look forward to the chance to serve. We cannot take our religious freedom for granted. Now is the ideal time for America to have a robust defense of our First Amendment rights and to strengthen our nation’s foundation of religious freedom as we approach our 250th anniversary.” – EPPC President Ryan T. Anderson
The Commission is tasked with developing a report by July 4th, 2026, on “the foundations of religious liberty in America, the impact of religious liberty on American society, current threats to domestic religious liberty, strategies to preserve and enhance religious liberty protections for future generations and programs to increase awareness of and celebrate America’s peaceful religious pluralism.”
Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and Dr. Ben Carson will be the chair and vice chair for the Commission, respectively. Additional members of the Commission include Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Bishop Robert Barron, Allyson Ho, and Rabbi Meier Soloveichik, among others.
