1. United States
2. Md.
3. Letter

Congressional Oversight Needed: Ryan Higgins’s Pentagon Role, Qualifications, and Influence Congress should seek clear, documented answers about Ryan Higgins’s role advising Secretary Pete Hegseth on religious matters. Service members and taxpayers deserve transparency about his qualifications, authority, outside interests, and responsibilities to troops of every faith and those with no religious affiliation. Qualifications: What education, training, military experience, or professional expertise qualified Higgins for this position, and what selection process was used? Appointment and authority: What are his official title, appointment type, compensation, reporting chain, and written duties? Does he exercise supervisory, policy, budget, or contracting authority? Policy influence: What role has he played in drafting speeches, developing policy, organizing religious events, or establishing and operating the Office of Religious Affairs? Religious freedom: What safeguards ensure that his work serves all service members, respects their beliefs, and protects them from pressure to participate in religious activities? Outside interests: Does he retain ownership, income, clients, or responsibilities through The Tempus Collaborative or other organizations? What ethics reviews, disclosures, and recusals address potential conflicts? Speakers and spending: How are outside religious speakers and organizations selected? Have any received federal payments, contracts, travel reimbursement, or other government support, and has Higgins had prior relationships with them? Public statements: Has the Department reviewed the public statements attributed to Higgins, obtained his response, and assessed their implications for his official responsibilities? Accountability: What measurable objectives guide his work, who evaluates his performance, and what resources support his position and related initiatives? Congress should request relevant appointment records, position descriptions, ethics agreements, organizational documents, and spending records, and make its findings public to the fullest extent permitted. These questions concern the exercise of public authority and the use of taxpayer funds. Our troops deserve leadership that protects their religious freedom and serves them fairly.