Only one Republican senator out of the
32 who voted against the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA)
publicly voiced opposition to the bill.
ENDA, which seeks to end workplace
discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity,
cleared the Senate on Thursday with the help of 10 Republican
Senators.
The measure now heads to the
Republican-controlled House, where it looks to be dead-on-arrival.
During the 4 days of debate on the
Senate floor only one member stood to oppose the bill: Senator Dan
Coats of Indiana.
“The legislation before us raises
very serious concerns regarding religious freedom. The so-called
protections from religious liberty in this bill are vaguely defined
and do not extend to all organizations that wish to adhere to their
moral or religious beliefs in their hiring practices,” Coats
told colleagues on Thursday. “For example, the religious
beliefs of faith-based child care providers and small business owners
would be disregarded under this legislation. Faith-based daycare
providers could be forced to hire individuals with views contrary to
the faith incorporated values of the daycare providers.”
Churches and religious non-profits are
exempted from the bill, as are small businesses with fewer than 15
employees.
“Do we want to support policies that
discriminate against an employer's religious beliefs and require
employers to hire individuals who contradict their very most deeply
held religious beliefs?” Coats rhetorically asked. “This bill
also would allow employers to be held liable to workplace environment
complaints opening the door to the silencing of employees who express
their deeply held beliefs. This possibility runs counter to
everything America stands for in the realm of free speech.”
(Related: Senate
approves gay protections bill ENDA; John McCain votes in favor.)