Bobby Jindal vows to force through ‘religious freedom’ law with executive order
Just hours after a bill to protect “religious freedom” failed in Louisiana, Governor Bobby Jindal said he would force through a measure to protect it using an Executive Order.
His bill, like those being fought over in Indiana, Arkansas and other states, would have “protected” businesses from having to serve customers if it had a religious objection against them. Unlike the other states, however, Governor Jindal’s bill specifies beliefs about marriage in its wording.
After the bill died in the Louisiana House, Governor Jindal issued a statement vowing to push ahead with an Executive Order which would accomplish the same as the House bill.
“We are disappointed by the committee’s action to return the Louisiana Marriage and Conscience Act to the calendar… We will be issuing an Executive Order shortly that will accomplish the intent of HB 707 to prevent the state from discriminating against persons or entities with deeply held religious beliefs that marriage is between one man and one woman,” he said.
He continued: “This Executive Order will prohibit the state from denying or revoking a tax exemption, tax deduction, contract, cooperative agreement, loan, professional license, certification, accreditation, or employment on the basis the person acts in accordance with a religious belief that marriage is between one man and one woman.”
Governor JIndal was in April urged by software giant IBM to scrap the bill. saying it could prove damaging commercially for Louisiana.
Former Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger has spoken out against his fellow Republicans who support religious freedom bills.
Businesses across the United States have similarly expressed their disappointment with such bills, arguing they will hurt business in the areas where are in effect
Since introducing a similar bill, the state of Indiana faced boycotts from several large companies, celebrities and other states, and has since hired a PR agency to perform damage limitation.
