Guards at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico have been cleared to continue using common religious greetings at the installation’s gates after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth publicly opposed a group that sought to halt the practice.
Base officials said they have no plans to restrict phrases such as “Have a blessed day” or “God bless you.”
The Military Religious Freedom Foundation reported last week that it had received dozens of complaints about the greetings.
MRFF founder Mikey Weinstein, a former Air Force officer, described the greetings as a violation of Air Force rules against religious discrimination and preferential treatment.
The organization initially claimed the greetings had been stopped after it contacted base officials.
Kirtland officials later told reporters that was not the case.
“Base officials have reviewed the feedback received from a small percentage of individuals with base access and, in line with Department of the Air Force policies and the law, have not issued, and have no plans to issue, any changes to procedures either mandating or restricting the use of common phrases while welcoming personnel to the installation,” officials said.
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They added that gate guards are expected to communicate professionally and courteously with everyone entering the facility.
Hegseth addressed the dispute on X last week.
The MRFF is a radical anti-Christian, pro-atheist group that attacks any/all faith inside the @DeptofWar.
We will never cave to them. The @usairforce will confront this.
God bless our Airmen. https://t.co/7ilR0QqVrk
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) September 4, 2026
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach said Friday that policies on the greetings “are unchanged.”
He said there were no plans to restrict “the use of common greetings while entering our bases.”
Air Force policy requires service members to ensure their words and actions do not discriminate against any individual or group because of faith, belief, or the absence of belief.
Weinstein said that if the greetings continue, his group will seek a writ of mandamus in federal court against the Defense Department.
He called the practice a “blatant violation” of the rules and argued that it threatens unity and good order in the ranks.
Weinstein said he did not personally hear a religious greeting when he visited the base Monday, though he cited a secondhand account that the phrases were still being used.
Officials at Kirtland emphasized that their review found complaints came from only a small percentage of people with base access.
The Department of Defense did not immediately provide additional comment.
The episode unfolded at a major Air Force installation that handles nuclear and other high-security missions near Albuquerque.
Service members assigned to the gates continue to process traffic under existing professional-conduct standards, according to the base.
Hegseth’s public statement framed the dispute as one the Air Force would not concede.
Base officials said their commitment to greeting those with access, while maintaining security, will continue.
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