Vatican-connected web site attacks critic of church role in U.S. military

The Web site, Aleteia, which has ties to the Vatican, has accused a former Air Force Academy Honor Graduate and former General Counsel to H. Ross Perot and Perot Systems Corporation of lying or exaggerating his ties to the Reagan White House. An article accuses Mikey Weinstein of using the ties to raise money.

Weinstein has been the bête noire of the military, catching them violating the rules of separation of church and state frequently

Aleteia reported “Mikey”, as he prefers to be called, has built up an organization fighting the involvement of the Christian church in the military by misleading donors about his past.

Weinstein founded the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, after he witnessed Christians getting special treatment at the academy. Also, his three children, who later attended the academy, were threatened with burning in hell because they do not accept Jesus Christ as their savior. Weinstein is Jewish.

His MRFF now has more than 40,000 active duty military members, the vast majority Christians, but also includes Jews, Muslims, nonbelievers and many others.

The Aleteia article said no proof could be found that Weinstein worked for the Reagan White House. In the same article, it said he exaggerated his ties.

“I stand by the story,” said writer Mark Stricherz.

Johnathan S. Miller, deputy assistant to President Ronald Reagan, reached by phone, was surprised anyone doubted Weinstein's bona fides. Asked if he could confirm Weinstein worked for Reagan, Miller said: "I absolutely can."

Weinstein, who was awarded the 1986 University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law "Professional Achievement Award" for his work at the White House, has demanded a retraction of the article through his trial lawyers, Mathis and Donheiser of Dallas.

Financier Samuel W. Fairchild, president of Trailblazers Resources, said he worked alongside Weinstein in the Reagan Administration.

Fairchild said, in a letter to Weinstein: “From 1986 - 1987, you were brought onto the legal staff of the White House Office of Administration (the EOP’s legal team) because, frankly, your superior work had caught the attention of people like Johnathan Miller, Assistant to the President and the “COO” of the Executive Office of the President, and other senior White House Staffers. Among the many duties you performed there as a tenacious lawyer was your service as the “Committee Management Officer” of the “Tower Commission” investigating the Iran-Contra Affair. You dove into the assignment with relish, and performed admirably. In fact, your strong work in this area led Frank Carlucci, who took over the National Security Council from John Poindexter when the Admiral resigned that post, and other senior corporate executives to hire you at Carlyle Group’s BDM International when he became Chairman of Carlyle.

I know this because I was there. We spoke nearly every day during that period.:

Weinstein’s trial lawyer, Randal Mathis, said the writer and "Aleteia should both be professionally embarrassed, but given the malicious nature of their defamation of Mr. Weinstein, I doubt they are professionally embarrassed about anything.”