{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://dougcollins.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=25&itemid=497", "Collins to Hagel: Clarify Policy on Chaplains", "2013-10-16", "2013", "2013-10", "Republican", "House", "GA", "Doug Collins", "C001093", "dougcollins.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "COLLINS TO HAGEL: CLARIFY POLICY ON CHAPLAINS\r\n\r\n\tNortheast Georgia's Congressman Asks Defense Secretary for Clarification on Religious Liberty During Shutdown\r\n\r\n\tWASHINGTON, Oct 16 -- Congressman Doug Collins (GA-09) wrote to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel yesterday requesting clarification about the status of contract military chaplains during the government shutdown. \u00a0Congressman Collins\u2019 outreach to Secretary Hagel comes after multiple news reports that contract military chaplains have been turned away from their posts on American military bases as a result of the government shutdown.\r\n\r\n\tIn addition to offering \u00a0H. Con. Res. 58, expressing the sense of the Congress that chaplains should be permitted to offer the access to religious expression that they normally provide, Congressman Collins wrote to Secretary Hagel in hopes that clarification directly from the Pentagon could make clear the status of chaplains, and by extension the First Amendment, \u00a0during this and any potential future lapse in appropriations.\r\n\r\n\tCongressman Collins said, \u201cThe First Amendment must never be deemed nonessential.\u00a0 When Secretary Hagel furloughed defense employees, what he thought was a personnel decision was, in fact, a decision with a direct impact on religious liberty and First Amendment rights. I want to offer the secretary the opportunity to clarify himself for not just our military faithful, but every American who cares about the Bill of Rights.\u201d\r\n\r\n\tSee full text of the letter, with Congressman Collins\u2019 specific questions to the secretary, here.\r\n\r\n\t\u00a0\r\n\r\n\t###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://dougcollins.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=25&itemid=497"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5863324515521526, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}