WASHINGTON – The tension between LGBT activists and religious freedom supporters reached a boiling point again this week, with an Alabama congressman right in the middle of it all.
The U.S. House of Representatives has been debating the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill – one of twelve spending bills that Congress must pass each year. Late Wednesday night, the House approved two amendments to the bill.
The first amendment, submitted by Representative Sean Maloney (D-NY), bars the federal government from paying contractors that discriminate based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Maloney’s amendment was approved 223-195. This amendment contained similar language to an amendment proposed by Maloney last week that led to open chaos on the House floor.
The other approved amendment came from Representative Bradley Byrne (R-AL1) and would exempt religious groups from the Obama administration’s directives to federal contractors and public schools. Byrne’s amendment was approved 233-186.
“We should have no problem ensuring that religious entities still enjoy the protections of the free exercise of religion,” Byrne said on the floor.
Republicans also added language that modified Maloney’s amendment. Introduced by Representative Joe Pitts (R-PA), it stated that “the administration must not run afoul of the 1st amendment, the 14th amendment and Article One of the Constitution” in its anti-discrimination effort.
In response to the events Wednesday night, Democratic leader and former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi issued a statement condemning Rep. Byrne’s amendment.
“With the Pittenger Amendment and the Byrne Amendment, Republicans overwhelmingly voted to support HB 2, the hateful and discriminatory state law in North Carolina, and to enable anti-LGBT bigotry across our country,” she said.
“House Republicans should be ashamed of themselves. History will not look kindly on the votes Republicans proudly took to target Americans because of whom they are or whom they love. House Republicans’ vile crusade against LGBT Americans is a complete disgrace.”
But many came to Byrne’s defense, including the faith-based Family Research Council. The organization’s president, Tony Perkins, released a statement on their website praising Byrne’s amendment and highlighted how it protects faith-based programs and negates Rep. Maloney’s amendment.
“Congress should not allow the government to punish faith-based contractors, like the Salvation Army, that work and hire in accordance with their First Amendment freedoms,” Perkins said. “By itself, the administration could use Maloney’s elevation of sexual orientation and gender identity for government contractors to gut long held religious freedom protections. This in turn, would strip faith-based contractors of contracts and result in job cuts and loss of services to those in need.
“While we oppose the Maloney provision, we applaud the passage of the Byrne provision to ensure Congress will continue to provide protections for the thousands of faith-based organizations and family-owned businesses that contract with the federal government to offer amazing services to many American communities.”
(Video below: Byrne discusses religious liberty on House floor)
