A Chick-fil-A franchise in Stuart, Fla., was packed on Aug. 1, 2012. (WND photo / Joe Kovacs)
The Pentagon apparently has little liking for Chick-fil-A sandwiches and the Defense of Marriage Act.
The U.S. Army has reportedly punished a master sergeant for hosting a party to celebrate both his personal promotion and the legislation supporting traditional heterosexual marriages.
According to the Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty, the unidentified soldier was investigated, reprimanded, threatened with judicial action and given a bad efficiency report.
“They say he is no longer a team player and was not performing up to standards,” Chaplain Alliance Executive Director Ron Crews told Fox News. “This is just one little example of a case of a soldier just wanting to express his views and now he’s been jumped on by the military.”
The soldier was promoted to master sergeant last summer, at the time of a national controversy over Chick-fil-A’s support of traditional marriage.
As WND reported Aug. 1, Americans flocked to Chick-fil-A restaurants in a national show of support for the eatery after the company’s president publicly stated his support for the biblical definition of marriage between one man and one woman.
Cars were wrapped around Chick-fil-A in Stuart, Fla., as part of a national fan-based Appreciation Day on Aug. 1, 2012 (WND photo / Joe Kovacs)
Some 600,000 people had signed up to celebrate Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day today, which former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee created to counter a boycott launched by same-sex marriage activists last week after Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy said he was “guilty as charged” for not supporting homosexual marriage.
“The goal is simple,” Huckabee wrote on Facebook. “Let’s affirm a business that operates on Christian principles and whose executives are willing to take a stand for the godly values we espouse by simply showing up and eating at Chick fil-A on Wednesday, August 1.”
“Now Christianity has to be banned, and that’s where this is all headed,” radio giant Rush Limbaugh said last August. “All this stuff at Chick-fil-A, the target is Christianity, not Chick-fil-A. The target is freedom of religion. [With] Obama and Obamacare, the target is always freedom. When we’re talking about liberals, the target is always freedom.”
Rush Limbaugh shows his support for Chick-fil-A (courtesy RushLimbaugh.com)
Crews told Fox News the soldier decided to hold a party to celebrate his new position. The invitations read, “In honor of my promotion and in honor of the Defense of Marriage Act, I’m serving Chick-fil-A sandwiches at my promotion party.”
After the event, the fighter received a letter of reprimand. Crews said at issue was the combination of the sandwiches and the soldier’s support of DOMA.
“There was initially some talk of bringing judicial punishment against him,” Crews said. “He had a letter put in his file and an investigation was initiated to see if he had violated any policy.”
The soldier then sought help from Chaplain Alliance, which put him in touch with an attorney. But nearly one year later, the soldier is still engulfed in a legal battle.
“He was at the pinnacle of his career,” Crews said. “To make that rank means you’ve done very well throughout your career. He wants to finish serving his time honorably.”
http://www.wnd.com/2013/06/army-smacks-soldier-for-serving-chick-fil-a/#728CFJjr3Gw5HVPQ.01
