Pam Bondi hosts first 'Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias Task Force' meeting

Attorney General Pam Bondi hosted the Trump administration’s first meeting for the Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias Task Force on Tuesday. 

"Together, this task force will identify any unlawful anti-Christian policies, practices or conduct across the government, seek input from faith-based organizations and state government to end anti-Christian bias, find and fix deficiencies in existing and regulatory practice that might contribute to the anti-Christian bias," Bondi said, also noting that the previous administration “abused and targeted Christians.”

"As President Trump has stated, the Biden administration engaged in an egregious pattern of targeting peaceful Christians while ignoring violent, anti-Christian offenses. The president is right," Bondi said. "President Biden declared Easter Sunday to be Transgender Day of Visibility. No longer."

Witnesses at the inaugural meeting included First Amendment litigator Michael Farris, who spoke on behalf of Senior Pastor Gary Hamrick of the Cornerstone Church; Liberty University Provost and Chief Academic Officer Dr. Scott Hicks; and Navy Seal Phil Mendes who was relieved of duty under the Biden administration for refusing to take the Covid vaccine due to his religious beliefs.

Bondi said in a statement, "As shown by our victims’ stories today, Biden’s Department of Justice abused and targeted peaceful Christians while ignoring violent, anti-Christian offenses. Thanks to President Trump, we have ended those abuses, and we will continue to work closely with every member of this Task Force to protect every American’s right to speak and worship freely."

Several top cabinet members were in attendance, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, FBI Director Kristi Noem, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and Education Secretary Linda McMahon, according to National News Desk.

Trump ordered the creation of the task force in February at a National Prayer Breakfast. 

The task force with Bondi at the helm will “fully prosecute anti-Christian violence and vandalism in our society” while defending the rights of “Christians and religious believers worldwide.”

President Trump’s order states that “Catholic churches, charities, and pro-life centers sought justice for violence, theft, and arson perpetrated against them, which the Biden Department of Justice largely ignored.  After more than 100 attacks, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution condemning this violence and calling on the Biden Administration to enforce the law.

"Then, in 2023, a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) memorandum asserted that 'radical-traditionalist' Catholics were domestic-terrorism threats and suggested infiltrating Catholic churches as 'threat mitigation.' This later-retracted FBI memorandum cited as support evidence propaganda from highly partisan sources.”

"... My Administration will not tolerate anti-Christian weaponization of government or unlawful conduct targeting Christians. The law protects the freedom of Americans and groups of Americans to practice their faith in peace, and my Administration will enforce the law and protect these freedoms. My Administration will ensure that any unlawful and improper conduct, policies, or practices that target Christians are identified, terminated, and rectified," the order reads.