A lawsuit against the Idaho Army National Guard is raising questions about whether Christian service members are being unfairly targeted. Maj. David Worley, with the backing of Liberty Counsel, is suing after being removed from his command position over past comments expressing his religious beliefs.
Worley, who had been selected to lead the National Guard’s Recruiting and Retention unit, became the subject of a complaint from a fellow guardsman. The complainant, who identifies as gay, objected to comments Worley had made in the past criticizing drag queen story hours and medical gender treatments for children.
After the complaint was filed, Worley was pushed to resign. When he refused, an investigation was launched. Despite finding no evidence that Worley had created a hostile work environment, the National Guard proceeded with his removal. Officials reportedly described his views as problematic and introduced a policy requiring all command candidates to be reviewed for “concerning ideologies.”
The lawsuit argues that the new policy is a way to systematically exclude Christians from command positions. Liberty Counsel claims that military leaders are using vague definitions of extremism to weed out officers with traditional religious views.
This legal fight comes as President Donald Trump has prioritized addressing religious discrimination in the military. His administration recently established a task force to investigate such cases, with Attorney General Pam Bondi leading the effort.
Officials from the Idaho Army National Guard have remained silent on the lawsuit, and Gov. Brad Little has yet to address the controversy.
