Can you imagine if a state legislature voted on a bill today that declared, "The legislature shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof"?  They would call it a bigoted,  anti-homosexual rights bill that would prevent the government from passing laws to protect "discrimination" against gays, bisexuals, and transsexuals.  (How do you discriminate against a bisexual?  How do you even know if a person is bisexual?  And exactly when did being bisexual or being a man demanding to be accepted as a woman become a civil rights issue?)

With the amendment of Indiana's Religious Freedom Act, Mike Pence and the Republican state legislature have made the act virtually meaningless.  Despite what Pence says, it seems clear that the original intent of the bill was to offer a defense to businesses and organizations that didn't want to get involved in gay marriages.  But now, having been amended to say that it can't be used as a defense against refusing to participate in LGBT events, the law in essence has become meaningless.

Furthermore:

The amendment offers some protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, the first time an Indiana law has addressed the issue.

What does Mike Pence's 180-degree turnaround mean for people of conscience in Indiana?  Bakers, photographers, wedding planners, and others may be sued if they don't participate in gay weddings, even if they have sincere religious objections to it.  

This country was founded on religious liberty.  No one was trying to stop people from being gay, or having gay relationships, no matter how unhealthy those relationships are.  When federal judges illegally imposed gay marriage on us, no one tried to stop gays from getting married.  But that's not enough.  The radical gay movement will not be satisfied until every heterosexual approves and participates.

This isn't about sexual freedom.  This is about tyranny against the free exercise of religion.

What's more, the new, amended law applies not just to homosexuals, but also to those with "gender identity" issues as well.  If a company refuses to hire a bearded man in a dress as a waitress, it can be sued.  If a sleepaway camp doesn't hire a guy with very hairy legs in a skirt as a camp counselor, it can be sued.  And what if two men dressed as women came to an orphanage and wanted to adopt a child?  If they were turned away, the orphanage could be sued.

This is what the people of Indiana will have to endure because supposedly "conservative" Republicans like Mike Pence have melted like butter.  Democrats take the radical and declare it mainstream, and Republicans are too busy sewing white flags to object.

Here's a tweet from Mike Pence:

Now that this is behind us, let’s move fwd together w/a renewed commitment to civility & respect that make IN great

Pence's attitude seems to be: whatever we did, it's done, so let's talk about something else!

By the way, I scanned the news, and the only candidate I see speaking out about this is Ted Cruz:

GOP Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas stood firm Wednesday night and denounced Democrats who he said “want to persecute anyone that has a good faith religious belief that marriage is a holy sacrament between the union of one man and one woman and ordained as a covenant by God."

He also took aim at Fortune 500 companies during a stop in Iowa, saying they are “running shamelessly to endorse the radical gay marriage agenda over religious liberty.”

I'd be delighted if the other candidates spoke out as well.  

This article was produced by NewsMachete.com, the conservative news site.