Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders refused a demand from the Freedom From Religion Foundation to rescind her proclamation closing state offices on December 26, declaring, "I will do no such thing." She defended characterizing Christmas as the celebration of Jesus Christ's birth and said the proclamation was meant to highlight that spiritual significance, not to impose doctrine. Sanders also pointed to attending a menorah lighting and argued her administration honors multiple faiths while recognizing her own.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders Refuses To Reverse Christmas Office Closure: "I Will Do No Such Thing"
Gov Sanders rejects demand from legal group to undo Christmas closure: 'I will do no such thing'
Arkansas Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has rebuffed a request from the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) to rescind her proclamation closing state offices on Friday, December 26. Sanders said the closure was intended to celebrate Christmas and give state employees extra time with their families.
FFRF Objects, Citing Separation Of Church And State
The FFRF, an organization that advocates for the separation of church and state, sent a letter arguing the proclamation was unconstitutional. The group said Sanders used her official capacity to advance a specific religious viewpoint and thus violated the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause.
Arkansas Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders speaks at CPAC.
Sanders' Firm Response
In a response obtained by news outlets, Sanders answered bluntly: "I will do no such thing." She argued that requiring gubernatorial communications to be strictly neutral on matters of religion is unrealistic and disputed the FFRF's description of Christmas as merely an "end-of-the-year holiday" with broadly secular elements.
"Christmas is not simply an 'end-of-the-year holiday' with 'broadly observed secular cultural aspects,'" Sanders wrote. "It’s not gifts, trees, and stockings that make this holiday special. Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, and if we are to honor Him properly, we should tell His miraculous, world-changing story properly, too."
Republican Arkansas Gov. Sarah Sanders.
Addressing Inclusivity And Intent
Sanders noted the irony of receiving the FFRF letter as she was leaving a menorah lighting attended by people from across Arkansas. She argued her administration does not alienate non-Christians and said that "only by voicing our own faith and celebrating other faiths can we make our state’s diverse religious communities feel seen and heard."
Sanders emphasized the proclamation's stated purpose was not to "browbeat readers with Christian doctrine" but to highlight the humility of Christ's birth — that the King of Kings was born in a manger, attended by poor shepherds rather than in a palace or temple.
"Though you may enter this season with bitterness, know that Christ is with you, that He loves you, and that He died for your sins just the same as He did for mine and everyone else’s," Sanders concluded in her letter.
The FFRF maintained that the governor acted in her official capacity to advance a religious viewpoint in violation of the Establishment Clause. Fox News Digital reached out to the Freedom From Religion Foundation for comment.
