Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reposts video of pastors saying women shouldn't vote

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reposted and praised a video interview of a self-described Christian nationalist pastor whose church doesn't believe women shouldn't be allowed to vote.

Doug Wilson, senior pastor of Christ Church in Idaho, said during the interview with CNN that, "Women are the kind of people that people come out of."

"The wife and mother, who is the chief executive of the home, is entrusted with three or four or five eternal souls," he continued.

In the CNN interview, Wilson also defended previous comments where he had said there was mutual affection between slaves and their masters. He also said that sodomy should be recriminalized. The Supreme Court invalidated sodomy laws in 2003.

In his repost of the interview on the platform X, Hegseth added, "All of Christ for All of Life."

Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told NPR in an emailed statement on Saturday that Hegseth is a "proud member of a church affiliated with the Congregation of Reformed Evangelical Churches," which was founded by Wilson.

"The Secretary very much appreciates many of Mr. Wilson's writings and teachings," Parnell also wrote.

In the CNN video, a congregant in Wilson's church explained that her husband "is the head of our household and I do submit to him." A fellow pastor also said that families should vote as a household, with the husband and father casting the vote.

Andrew Whitehead, a sociology professor at Indiana University Indianapolis and an expert on Christian nationalism, told NPR the goal for Wilson and his followers is to spread these ideas across the country – and ultimately make them enforceable.

 "It's not just they have these personal Christian beliefs about the role of women in the family. It's that they want to enforce those for everybody," Whitehead said.

Christ Church did not immediately respond to NPR's request for comment.

Wilson's church, which is setting up parishes around the country, recently opened a new church in the nation's capital. Hegseth and his family reportedly attended services there, according to CNN.

Whitehead says the fact that someone so high up in the government is sharing these views is consequential for all Americans.

"It really does matter if the Secretary of Defense is retweeting a video with very particular views about whether women should be able to vote or serve in combat roles or if slavery really isn't all that bad," Whitehead said. "That's not just a person's view. It's a person in a pretty broad position of power."
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