The still-forming field of Republicans who plan to seek the White House in 2016 are unusually united over an Indiana religious freedom law that news outlets are calling “divisive.”
Proponents of the law have said it provides legal protection for religious business owners while opponents said it gives cover to discriminate against gays and lesbians.
“The debate injected a divisive new issue into the 2016 presidential campaign, presenting Republican hopefuls with a difficult choice,” said a Monday report in the Washington Post. “Publicly back [Republican Indiana Gov. Mike] Pence on an issue that threatens to hurt the GOP among the majority of Americans who support gay rights, or side with the party’s business wing against the law and risk angering base conservatives.”
The New York Times described the matter as “a growing political firestorm.”
A Wall Street Journal editorial on Monday said there is “political wrath raining down upon Indiana.”
The deluge of reports and opinion pieces created the sense that Republicans had misstepped and would need to distance themselves from the controversy.
Still, while social issues have tripped up Republicans in the past — they often find themselves in the uncomfortable position of trying to appeal to a sizable Christian conservative voting block as well as more secular voters — the likely 2016 candidates have come out in support of the law, arguing that it only reinforced existing federal law.
Backing the law are Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker; Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal; former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush; former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee; former Texas Gov. Rick Perry; Texas Sen. Ted Cruz; Florida Sen. Marco Rubio; former Sen. Rick Santorum; former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina; and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson.
Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul has so far not commented publicly on the issue.
Carson weighed in even though just four weeks ago he vowed not to get bogged down in “gay rights” as an issue. “[E]very time I’m gaining momentum the liberal press says, ‘Let’s talk about gay rights,'” he said. “And I’m just not going to fall for that anymore.”
Pence called on the state legislature Tuesday to amend the law to include language that would explicitly prevent businesses from engaging in discrimination.
“I stand by this law,” he said in an interview on Fox News, “but I understand that the way that some on the left and frankly, some in the national media have mischaracterized this law over the last week might make it necessary for us to clarify the law through legislation.”
