Philadelphia, PA — On June 23, 2025, during remarks to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told graduates, “There are two kinds of people in life: those who believe in God and those who think they’re God. There’s something beautiful, humbling and properly ordered about a man and woman who understands that there is a power greater than themselves. That everything is not in their control. And that they are the beloved child of a merciful God who hears their prayers.”
From his government Twitter account, Duffy tweeted excerpts from the speech.
In response, American Atheists president Nick Fish sent Duffy a letter urging him to apologize for his remarks and refrain from lazy tropes attacking atheists and nonreligious Americans. The letter reads, in part: “As a nation, we face a great many challenges that we must confront together. But rather than bridge the divides within our nation, your divisive language at the Merchant Marine Academy was another attack on religious equality from this administration under the guise of your twisted interpretation of religious liberty and your appeals to outright Christian supremacy.”
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