Politics
USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins sent Easter email to staff touting 'Jesus' and 'God'

Published Tue, Apr 7 2026 5:10 PM EDT
Updated Wed, Apr 8 2026 8:14 AM EDT
Dan Mangan
@_DanMangan
@in/danmangancnbc/

KEY POINTS
• U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins sent USDA staff a previously unreported Easter email that emphasized the story of Jesus being crucified and resurrected.
• Some Christians said they felt alienated by the message for its overt religiosity.
• A USDA spokesperson said Rollins was "within her rights" to send the message.
• On Monday, President Donald Trump told reporters that he believed God supports the United States against Iran, which is predominantly Shiite Muslim.


Brooke Rollins, US agriculture secretary, speaks to members of the media outside the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Friday, March 27, 2026.
Aaron Schwartz | Sipa | Bloomberg | Getty Images

U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins sent USDA staff an Easter email that emphasized the story of Jesus being crucified and resurrected, a message that some Christians said alienated them for its overt religiosity. ... "Happy Easter — He is Risen indeed," Rollins wrote in the email sent on Good Friday, which CNBC has reviewed and was first to report.

"From the foot of the Cross on Good Friday to the stone rolled away from the now empty tomb, sin has been destroyed," Rollins wrote. ... "Jesus has been raised from the dead. And God has granted each of us victory and new life. And where there is life — risen life — there is hope."

The email included an illustration of a round stone rolled away from the entrance to Jesus' tomb, with the words "Christ is Risen" written above the image. ... A USDA staffer who spoke to CNBC said the email was offensive to them as a devout Christian, and as a department employee who works "with people of other faiths, Muslims, Hindus."

The staffer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were worried about retaliation, said other USDA employees also were offended by Rollins' message. ... "People are not on board for her sort of brand from a Christian nationalist perspective," the staffer said. "It misses the mark from a lot of angles."

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