Thursday, November 27, 2014

Militant preacher/legislator loses appeal of Navy discharge



An ex-Navy chaplain who was elected as a Colorado state legislator despite believing President Obama is possessed by demons has lost an appeal of his discharge from the Navy.
The court of Federal Claims rejected the claims of State Rep. Gordon Klingenschmitt for back pay and reinstatement in the Navy under the Tucker Act after he was kicked out for disobeying an order not to wear his uniform while praying in Jesus name in 2006 in a Washington, D.C., park outside the White House.
Court ruling
Klingenschmitt tried an on-the-air exorcism of Obama, though presumably God would have had access even if it was done privately.
The former chaplain is the leader of a group and hosts a Web site intent on removing the demons that possess homosexuals, http://www.prayinjesusname.org.
Klingenschmitt accused of a gay Democrat congressman from Boulder, Colo., of seeking to execute Christians. The claim was withdrawn.
Slate reported Klingenschmitt said gays could not be allowed on the battlefield because they would have to change their diapers after having anal sex.
The Web site did not mention this week’s decision, and Klingenschmitt, who will represent a Colorado Springs district, did not answer a request for a comment.
Klingenschmitt sought his re-instatement and back pay claiming he was removed for praying in Jesus name, which he said would be a violation of his free speech and religious rights.
A senior Navy official familiar with the case said the decision against Klingenschmitt had nothing to do with the prayer.
“Klingenschmitt received a Special Court Martial and was charged with “disobedience of a lawful order” and was convicted by that Special Court,” said the official.
“There were those within the command who thought that he should have received a General Court Martial under which if found guilty the sentencing would have been much more severe, (e.g. confinement and less than honorable discharge). 
Instead the Navy settled for removing him, and allowing him an honorable discharge. A $3,000 fine was dismissed.
 Mikey Weinstein, an Air Force Academy graduate, considers Klingenschmitt one of the most extreme examples of fundamentalist Christians to breach the bar of separation of church in the state.
Weinstein founded a group, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, which has been nominated for a Nobel prize for its efforts to make sure the U.S. does not come under the influence of Christians, particularly now that the nation is threatened by Islamic jihadists.
Weinstein, a lawyer, has pressured the military to separate the military from religion, forcing numerous changes.




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