Indiana Governor Signs Amended Religious Freedom Bill

PREVENTS “DISCRIMINATION“

by Sharon Rondeau

(Apr. 3, 2015) — The Indiana legislature prepared, and Gov. Mike Pence has signed, an amended bill with wording preventing discrimination following a media firestorm which painted Pence and the legislature as bigoted against certain classes of people for passing an initial “religious freedom” bill.

Pence denied that “discrimination” was embodied in the religious freedom bill signed on March 26.  Wording in the legislation states that government “may not substantially burden a person’s exercise of religion, even if the burden results from a rule of general applicability” (page 3).

Opponents of the bill called for “LGBT protection,” even though the law did not mention discrimination against any citizen.  An article at The Daily Beast criticized Pence for taking a stance as a “culture warrior.”

The amendment has elicited criticism from both proponents and opponents of the original bill.

Pence was verbally attacked by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Washington State Gov. Jay Inslee, and Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy over the first version of the bill, with Malloy issuing an executive order on Monday prohibiting state-funded travel to Indiana unless and until a change in the law was made.

In the order, Malloy said that “the exercise of religious freedom should not be a justification based upon sex, sexual orientation or gender identity or expression or other protected classes…”

Malloy went so far as to personally call Pence “a bigot” and accuse him of impeding “progress.”

Pence has been mentioned by some as a possible 2016 presidential candidate. On March 31, The Advocate reported that “Every GOP 2016 Hopeful Backs Mike Pence.”

The White House said that Pence should find it “easy” “to stand up and say that it is wrong to discriminate against people just because of who they love.”   Pence has said that the bill was misunderstood and was not aimed at discriminating against gays.

In a column not marked “opinion” or “editorial” at The Washington Post, author Chris Cillizza wrote, “It’s unclear whether Pence’s call on the state legislature to add the ‘discrimination’ language to the law before week’s end will be enough to quiet the national hubbub he (or, in Pence’s mind, the media) has created.  What is clear is that Democrats nationally have seized on the idea that Republicans in Indiana — whether willfully or not — passed a law that could have led to significant discrimination against gays and lesbians. Fixing that ‘glitch’ won’t likely quiet those voices in the Democratic party who believe — and who find it in their political interests — to paint Republicans like Pence as intolerant of those not like them.”

Malloy’s national attack on another sitting governor is unprecedented to this writer’s knowledge.  Now that Indiana’s law has been altered, The Post & Email has sent an email to Malloy’s office asking if his ban will be lifted, but Connecticut state offices are closed today because of Good Friday.

An automated response to our message reads:

One year ago, Malloy and Pence reportedly agreed to a “friendly wager” regarding the outcome of the 2014 NCAA women’s basketball game held in Nashville, TN.

The “Final Four” men’s basketball tournament is being held in Indianapolis on Saturday and Monday, although the organization which sponsors it, the Indianpolis-based NCAA, expressed concern over the ramifications of the religious freedom bill.

Malloy has declared Easter weekend, beginning today, as “Husky Weekend” “in recognition of the UConn women’s basketball team playing in the NCAA Final Four tournament.”  The University of Connecticut also made a public statement in which it said that the men’s basketball coach would not be attending the Final Four in Indianapolis this year because of the new Indiana law which has now been amended.

Malloy noted in his proclamation that he will “proudly extend” Husky Weekend to Tuesday if the women’s team “makes it to the championship game.”

UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma said that Indianans should “come to their senses here.  Go on with your life and let everybody else go on with theirs. That’s my approach, and I don’t understand anybody who has a different approach.”

Auriemma, who earns nearly $11 million annually, and the UConn women’s basketball team will be in Tampa Bay, FL for the “Final Four” tournament beginning on Easter Sunday.  Next year’s women’s Final Four is scheduled to be held in Indianapolis, a plan Malloy disparaged if the law were to remain unchanged.

As of early 2012, Connecticut and Indiana both maintained a ban on the sale of alcohol on Sundays.  Malloy signed a bill in May of that year lifting the “Blue Law” which had prohibited alcohol sales since colonial times in order to make businesses “more competitive.”  Malloy viewed that measure as “progress.”

Inslee, Malloy and Cuomo‘s states signed an Amicus Curiae brief in support of Obama’s executive actions on illegal aliens submitted to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, where Judge Andrew Hanen placed a temporary injunction pending higher court decisions.

The state of Washington has removed the Amicus Curiae from the attorney general’s website.

On March 18, The Post & Email submitted a FOIA request to Malloy’s office and that of his attorney general, George Jepsen, for any emails pertaining to the executive actions containing specific search terms and exchanged with certain addressees.  While Jepsen’s office was prompt to respond, an attorney working in Malloy’s office of general counsel indicated on Thursday that the search for responsive documents is ongoing.

A second FOIA request to Malloy’s office made on Thursday asked for emails with certain addressees involving “Indiana” as a search term and was acknowledged by Alexandra Lombardi, Associate General Counsel.

Malloy prides himself on striving to eliminate “income inequality” and creating a business-friendly environment, as Connecticut has been one of the five worst states to do business for many years.  Its unemployment rate was reported as 6.4% for February 2015.

Malloy’s biography states that Connecticut was a “national leader in implementing the Affordable Care Act,” and that “Connecticut’s health care exchange is now assisting other states that are interested in duplicating its model.”  However, Connecticut now has a projected $133 million deficit caused by “a recent federal decision denying Connecticut’s claim for $63 million in Medicaid reimbursements.”

Medicaid eligibility was expanded under the Affordable Care Act in states which chose to open health exchanges.

When several Hartford polling places experienced delays in distributing ballots to voters on Election Day in November, Obama personally called a Hartford radio station to advise affected voters to return to their polling locations to cast ballots.  As a result of the delay, a Connecticut Superior Court judge ruled that two locations would remain open for 30 minutes past the state-mandated closing time of 8:00 p.m.

Malloy had been in a very close race against businessman Tom Foley for the second time.

In response to Pence’s signing of the original religious freedom bill, a person representing himself as Muslim wrote that the law “provides ‘liberty’ for all faiths, and that includes us Muslims. (Yes, that shrieking sound you heard was from the Christian conservatives who championed this law intending it to truly only benefit fellow Christians.)…I can’t wait to see the face of the conservatives who refused to bake a cake for a gay couple when I say I want a cake for my heterosexual marriage and they smile. And then I add, it’s so I can take a third wife.  Wonder how they will react?” in an article featured at Yahoo! News.

Another Yahoo! editorial seeks to “persuade” people of faith to embrace same-sex “marriage” “at a time when more progress needs to be made.”  Other items Yahoo! deems newsworthy are “Here’s What Happened When Miley Cyrus Trolled Sen. Tom Cotton” and “What Would Rand Paul Do About A Discriminatory Indiana Pizza Shop?”

The owners of an Indiana pizza parlor who stated that if asked, they would not provide pizza for a same-sex wedding have received more than $565,000 as of this writing through a GoFundMe account established after they were forced to close their business in the wake of threats and harassment.  The fundraiser was announced by Dana Loesch of The Blaze.

Several Indiana legislators believe that the alteration to the bill will “destroy religious freedom protection in Indiana” rather than protect it.

Article I, Section 3 of the Indiana constitution states that “No law shall, in any case whatever, control the free exercise and enjoyment of religious opinions, or interfere with the rights of conscience.”

Article I, Section 1 reads, “WE DECLARE, That all people are created equal; that they are endowed by their CREATOR with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that all power is inherent in the People; and that all free governments are, and of right ought to be, founded on their authority, and instituted for their peace, safety, and well-being. For the advancement of these ends, the People have, at all times, an indefeasible right to alter and reform their government.”

Article I, Section 9 reads:

No law shall be passed, restraining the free interchange of thought and opinion, or restricting the right to speak, write, or print, freely, on any subject whatever: but for the abuse of that right, every person shall be responsible.