Federal Agencies’ Partisan Messaging During Shutdown Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns

During the October 2025 U.S. government shutdown, several federal agencies issued public statements and internal communications blaming Senate Democrats for the crisis — and signed off with “God bless,” raising questions not only under federal law but also about the separation of church and state.

Partisan Messaging in Official Communications

Departments including Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Justice, and Agriculture published alerts accusing “radical left” Democrats of causing the shutdown by refusing to approve a $1.5 trillion funding package. The Small Business Administration even provided suggested out-of-office email templates that explicitly blamed Senate Democrats for the shutdown.

Adding “God bless” at the end of official communications injects a religious element into government messaging, which experts say is inappropriate in federal communications.

Potential Violations of the Hatch Act

The Hatch Act of 1939 restricts federal employees from engaging in partisan political activity while on duty, in a federal facility, or using government resources. Legal experts argue that sending messages blaming Democrats using official government channels constitutes partisan political activity, which is prohibited.

Kathleen Clark, a government ethics lawyer, commented that HUD and other agencies appear to have violated the Hatch Act by using taxpayer-funded websites and emails to deliver partisan messaging.

Separation of Church and State Concerns

The First Amendment’s Establishment Clause prohibits the government from endorsing religion or favoring one faith over another. By ending partisan messages with “God bless,” these communications risk blurring the line between government and religion, implying official approval of religious language in political messaging.

“Even a small phrase like ‘God bless’ can be problematic when it appears in partisan government communications,” said a constitutional law expert. “It sends the message that the government is aligning political viewpoints with religious expression.”

Calls for Investigation and Accountability

Critics, including Rep. Jamie Raskin and ethics groups like Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and Public Citizen, have condemned the messages as both unethical and potentially illegal. Complaints have been filed, calling for the Office of Special Counsel and other oversight bodies to investigate violations of both the Hatch Act and the principle of church-state separation.

Federal agencies’ partisan messages during the shutdown, particularly those signed “God bless,” raise serious questions about the legality and ethics of government communications. Beyond potential violations of the Hatch Act, these communications may infringe upon the principle of separation of church and state, highlighting the need for strong oversight to maintain the neutrality and integrity of federal institutions.