Democrats Caught Up in Controversial Indiana Religious Freedom Law
Democrats Caught Up in Controversial Indiana Religious Freedom Law.
By: MJ News
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Democrats Caught Up in Controversial Indiana Religious Freedom Law - Video
Indiana Senate Minority Leader Tim Lanane (left), and Scott Pelath, Minority Leader of the Indiana House of Representatives, suggested on March 30, 2015, that a full repeal of Indianas newly signed RFRA law was necessary. They repeated that call on Tuesday.(Photo: Robert Scheer / The Star)
Indiana's Democrats on Tuesday said Republican Gov. Mike Pence has to take quick action and ditch the "religious freedom" law to undo the damage the measure has caused to the state's reputation.
House Minority Leader Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, said at a news conference that the remedy has to be clear, decisive and understandable and the fastest way to do that is to repeal the law. He said to push for anything less than a repeal would be incorrect.
Sen. Tim Lanane, D-Anderson, said the reaction over the law has mushroomed, going from does the law discriminate to does Indiana discriminate?
Instead of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Lanane, the Senate Minority Leader, said that because of the backlash, the state now needs an "Indiana Reputation Restoration Act."
Lanane also said the state should take the opportunity now to make it illegal to discriminate based on sexual orientation. Adding such protections would be an acceptable compromise, he said.
The Democrats made their remarks in response to Pence's news conference Tuesday where he said he wanted a quick amendment to RFRA to make it clear that the law does not discriminate and that businesses should not be allowed to deny services to anyone.
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Indiana Democrats repeat call for RFRA repeal
NEWTOWN >> The Newtown Democrats assembled for their monthly meeting at the historic Court Inn in downtown Newtown on Feb. 18 to screen candidates for the upcoming May primary.
The meeting was led by Newtown Democrats Chairperson Dennis Fisher who was excited by the large number of qualified candidates hoping to occupy key local leadership positions next year.
Tonight we heard from very qualified candidates who have great experience in both professional and volunteer capacities in serving our local community. Newtown is lucky to have so many seeking to continue to serve the public good," he said.
With several positions are up for grabs this year, Fisher said the Newtown Democrats "are ready and eager to support a path to victory for our qualified candidates."
In Newtown Borough, Tara Grunde-McLaughlin is seeking the position of borough council member in Ward 1. In Newtown Township, Mark Joseph is running for Newtown Supervisor and Ed Valenti for Constable. Two school board seats are also in play and being sought by incumbent Bill Foster and Ed Tate.
But the position that generated the most interest was the job of Magisterial District Court Judge, which recently became available due to the unexpected death of long-time Judge Donald Nasshorn.
Six candidates, four Republicans and two Democrats (cross-party filing is permitted for this position), were in attendance at the meeting and introduced themselves to the Newtown Democrats.
The two Democrats, Karen Quinn and Jerry Schenkman, and the four Republicans, Alice Hughes, Mick Petruzzi, Sean Ward and Mark Zlock each gave a short three minute presentation about their background and qualifications followed by questions from the audience. .
Each candidate is required to complete petition forms for their office and obtain the required number of signatures.
We feel this is a great start to a process that will lead to Democratic wins in November, said long-time Democrat and previous office-holder Peg Dissinger. We are counting on all Democrats to become engaged in this process over the next few months so we can elect competent professionals to these key leadership positions in November.
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Newtown Democrats screen candidates for May Primary; position of district judge draws biggest attention at meeting
Indiana House Democrats take a stand against RFRA
House Democrats took a stand this week against RFRA (SB 101), which is a bill that allows religious freedom to be used as the basis for discrimination.
By: Indiana House Democrats
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Indiana House Democrats take a stand against RFRA - Video
Colorado Capitol Dome (Denver Post file photo)
DENVER (AP) Colorado House Democrats advanced measures to raise the minimum wage over objections from Republicans who say it's a costly idea.
Democrats gave initial approval Monday to asking voters to raise Colorado's minimum wage from $8.23 an hour to $12.50 by 2020. They also gave preliminary approval to letting municipalities set their own minimum wage.
The measures are temporary victories for Democrats. They don't have the two thirds support needed during a final vote later in the House to get the referred question to voters. The measure letting local governments set a minimum wage can pass the House, but will likely die in the GOP-led Senate.
Still, Democrats want to set the stage for a ballot question later.
Republicans say increasing the minimum way will drive up business costs and the price of consumer goods.