Democrats avoid explaining how Indiana's religious freedom law is different from laws they supported

Indiana Governor Mike Pence

A number of prominent Democrats in the past supported laws similar to the controversial new legislation in Indiana, which says the government can't "substantially burden a person's exercise of religion" in requiring them to engage in business practices or transactions that violate their beliefs. (The classic example in which the law could come into play, of course, is in allowing religious bakers or florists to deny service to a gay couple for their wedding.)

Though this particular bill was backed by Republicans in Indiana, Democrats like President Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Sen. Chuck Schumer have all supported similar legislation themselves. President Bill Clinton signed a similar (though narrower) federal law into effect in 1993, and then-State Sen. Barack Obama voted for religious freedom legislation in Illinois in 1998.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest avoided explaining any substantial differences between the laws, arguing instead that the Indiana legislation is outdated.

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Bonnie Kristian

Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.