Calls emerge to override Georgia governor’s ‘religious liberty’ veto

What was said about veto

Pro veto

The Rev. William Flippin Jr., Emmanuel Lutheran Church:

“I applaud Governor Deal for his decision to veto a bill that sanctioned discrimination in the name of religion. My faith teaches that we are to treat others fairly, as we would wish to be treated ourselves. By vetoing this bill, the governor has sent a clear message that inclusion is a value that Georgia must embrace. The next step to protect all Georgians from discrimination is to pass comprehensive civil rights protections into law.”

The Metro Atlanta Chamber:

“We applaud Governor Deal for his courage in vetoing HB 757. In doing so, the governor confirmed that there is no place in Georgia for legislation perceived as allowing for discrimination. His thoughtful deliberation and consideration on this issue has led to an outcome that preserves Georgia’s positive business climate, encourages job growth and sustains our quality of life, and is truly in the best interest of all Georgians. Governor Deal has made it clear that Georgians value both our rich faith traditions and our place as a global destination for businesses and visitors alike. We share his vision of Georgia as an inclusive, welcoming state and support his decision in this important debate.”

The Walt Disney Co.:

“We applaud Governor Deal for making the right decision on this piece of legislation and look forward to continuing our film production in Georgia.”

Salesforce:

“Salesforce applauds Governor Deal’s decision to veto HB 757. We look forward to growing both our team and investments in Georgia — including hosting thousands of customers, partners and employees at our Salesforce Connections event in Atlanta on May 10-12th.”

Not happy about veto

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins:

“The Devil has gone down to Georgia again, but this time it was in the form of big business and cowardly politicians.

“Governor Deal’s veto of a watered-down religious liberty bill, which would have barely afforded pastors and priests protections from the state over their beliefs over natural marriage, reveals how LGBT activists and their allies in big business are now not even willing to allow religious freedom within the four walls of a church. It’s disappointing that only one day after Easter Sunday, Governor Deal announces the veto of a modest bill that would provide protections for churches threatened by government.”

Erick Erickson, conservative blogger, commentator and radio host:

“What conservatives in Georgia are now seeing is that big businesses have the ear of Governor Deal in a way small businesses and churches do not. They are also seeing that no compromise can be had on the religious liberty issue. The evangelicals actually reduced the impact of HB 757 by making it only apply to nonprofit religious organizations and, at Governor Deal’s request, included specific language prohibiting invidious discrimination.

“To have Governor Deal use rhetoric by opponents of religious liberty legislation — rhetoric that actually ignores key components of the legislation — was disappointing.”

The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights:

“If Governor Deal were honest, he would say that the pressure coming from the corporate elite was overwhelming and that it threatened to cause economic ruin to his state. Even men and women of faith could understand why he would veto the bill.

“Instead, he justified his veto saying, ‘I do not respond very well to insults or threats.’ That is a lie — he responds very well to threats. Indeed, it is precisely the kinds of threats issued by the NFL, Disney and Marvel Studios that made him cave: The NFL threatened to deny Atlanta a future Super Bowl, and Disney and Marvel threatened to relocate.”

Dave Baker, executive director of Faith and Freedom Coalition of Georgia:

“This is unfortunate. This bill not only had the overwhelming support of both houses of the General Assembly, but also the people of Georgia. … This was a compromise bill, and we made sure it protected people of faith without discriminating against anyone. We think this is an unfortunate decision by the governor.”

‘Religious liberty’ timeline

June 26, 2013 — The U.S. Supreme Court strikes down key sections of the Defense of Marriage Act. The court essentially makes gay marriage a state issue. Following the rulings, faith leaders form new coalitions and prepare for a series of state legislative showdowns.

Feb. 24, 2014 — Georgia's first "religious freedom" bills begin moving forward. Supporters of separate bills in both the Senate and House say Georgia needs to act to protect people of any religion from government intrusion. But critics say the bills would open the door for private business owners to cite their religious beliefs in declining to serve people they believe are gay or having premarital sex.

Feb. 26, 2014 — Big business interests — the Metro Atlanta Chamber, Coca-Cola, Delta Air Lines, Home Depot and the InterContinental Hotel Group — oppose the bills as it appears neither will meet a key deadline to advance. Gov. Nathan Deal says the bills are not a priority for him.

May 2014 — After the bills fail to pass, business groups form the Georgia Coalition for Job Creation and announce they have raised more than $350,000 in anticipation of another battle over 'religious liberty' bills in 2015.

Jan. 28, 2015 — Georgia clergy groups hold dueling "religious liberty" rallies at the Georgia Capitol as the debate ramps up.

March 5, 2015 — "Religious liberty" legislation (Senate Bill 129) passes the Georgia Senate 37-15.

April 2, 2015 — After controversies in Indiana and Arkansas, SB 129 fails to pass in Georgia.

May 16, 2015 — Georgia Republicans endorse a religious liberty bill at their statewide convention. Some say it will be needed to offset a coming U.S. Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage.

June 26, 2015 — The U.S. Supreme Court rules that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry, and that all 50 states must recognize the spousal rights of those who've already tied the knot.

July 11, 2015 — Georgia House Speaker David Ralston calls for the state to adopt a "pastor's protection act" to ensure no church leader can be forced to perform a same-sex wedding. Those protections are already contained in the First Amendment, but Ralston says they are necessary following the recent Supreme Court decision.

August 2015 — State Sen. Josh McKoon, a sponsor of "religious liberty" legislation, says Georgia big businesses are the main obstacle to "religious freedom" bills.

“We’ve had this problem because very large multinational corporations that are headquartered in this state — their executives, many of whom are not from Georgia — have different values than you and I do,” said McKoon, a Columbus attorney. “They think that their cultural norms, their liberal, far-left cultural norms, should be applied to our state.”

Aug. 4, 2015 — Two big corporate political action committees combine to raise about $575,000 in big-money corporate checks in the four months since "religious liberty" legislation fails to pass.

Jan. 6, 2016 — Companies, including Google, SunTrust and AT&T, join stalwarts including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot and UPS on a list of nearly 100 businesses and universities to launch a campaign to defeat "religious liberty" legislation.

Feb. 10, 2016 — Evangelist Franklin Graham condemns secularism and same-sex marriage at a prayer rally attended by thousands in downtown Atlanta as several "religious liberty" proposals are percolating in the statehouse.

Feb. 19, 2016 — The Georgia Senate passes a "religious liberty" bill, an amended House Bill 757, which originally sought the pastor protections Ralston had sought.

Feb. 26, 2016 — Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff suggests he may cut its Georgia presence if the state enacts a "religious liberty" law. Benioff was a huge voice against Indiana's "religious liberty" bill and canceled the company's programs in that state after Gov. Mike Pence signed the bill. Salesforce has a Buckhead office that includes Pardot, a tech business sold to what is now a Salesforce subsidiary.

March 3, 2016 — Gov. Nathan Deal threatens to veto any bill that legalizes discrimination.

March 16, 2016 — The Georgia Legislature passes a further-amended HB 757 and sends it to the governor's desk. Many prominent corporations then threaten to take their businesses out of the state.

March 28, 2016 — Deal announces he will veto HB 757.

Minutes after Gov. Nathan Deal on Monday announced his veto of a”religious liberty” bill, some state lawmakers began calling for colleagues to overturn the governor’s decision.

Special session or not, Deal's veto of House Bill 757 assures one thing: The debate is not over. From a potential special session this year, to lawmakers' return in January to the 2018 race for governor, the religious liberty fight will have a prominent place in Georgia for years to come.

Deal, speaking to reporters from his ceremonial office on the Capitol’s second floor, said he could not in good conscience sign the bill into law. But the measure’s backers said he made the wrong choice.

State Sen. Mike Crane, a Newnan Republican running for Congress, said Deal's announcement Monday "is another example of how the political class is bought and paid for by corporations and lobbyists. Rather than standing up and protecting the First Amendment, the political class would rather sacrifice those rights to keep the money flowing."

“The fight is not over,” Crane said in a statement on his campaign website, and he called on lawmakers to return to Atlanta for a special session to fight Deal’s veto.

It will not be easy for HB 757’s supporters to reopen the House and Senate chambers that closed for the year on Thursday. Were they to be successful, it would be even more difficult to override Deal’s veto.

There are two ways for lawmakers to meet outside regular session. The governor can order them back — which is unlikely.

The state constitution also says legislators can decide to return on their own if three-fifths of the members of the House and Senate each “certify to the governor in writing … that in their opinion an emergency exists in the affairs of the state.”

That would require 108 members of the House and 34 members of the Senate to call themselves back in. HB 757 received the votes of 104 of the 118 Republican members of the Georgia House and 37 of the 39 Republican members of the Senate.

Crane joins state Sen. Bill Heath, R-Newnan, in calling for a special session, but other supporters of the bill are being more cautious.

State Sen. Greg Kirk, R-Americus, sponsored a different religious liberty bill that would have allowed individuals and faith-based organizations to deny services to LGBT Georgians. Part of it was added to HB 757.

“I respectfully disagree with Governor Deal’s decision,” Kirk said in an email to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The bill “was a deliberately drawn piece of legislation that did not discriminate against the LGBT and protected the faith community.”

Kirk did not respond when asked whether he supports a special session, and not all Republicans are on board with the idea.

State Rep. Allen Peake, R-Macon, who voted against the bill at the request of his brother, who is gay, said he would not vote to return to Atlanta before January.

“I, for one, will not be calling for or support coming back for a special session,” Peake said via Twitter.

State Rep. B.J. Pak, R-Lilburn, who is not running for re-election, was more direct. Calling for a special session to override one non-emergency bill is "one of the dumbest thing I've ever heard at the Capitol," Pak said on Twitter.

Any special session would cost taxpayers about $41,000 a day in per diem paid to state lawmakers, along with any other costs associated with a session, such as printing and staffing.

Crane and Heath are getting some outside help. Erick Erickson, a host on News 95.5 and AM 750 WSB, was promoting a website Monday that allowed users to enter their information and send an automated message to Deal asking him to order lawmakers back to Atlanta this year.

A lack of a special session this year, however, most likely means the issue is front and center when legislators return to normal session in January.

"I fully expect we'll be back next year debating this again," state Sen. Josh McKoon, R-Columbus, told Boston NPR station WBUR via telephone

Meanwhile, Deal's veto puts him at odds with both House Speaker David Ralston, R-Blue Ridge, and Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle. Both men issued statements defending the bill. While Ralston said he respected Deal and the thought the governor gave the issue, he said HB 757 included "clear anti-discriminatory language."

“I believed, and still do, that HB 757 met the test we shared,” he said.

Cagle said lawmakers “worked hard to find the right balance on this most challenging of issues,” and he said Georgia should protect “the right of individuals to practice their faith without government interference.”

A spokesman for Ralston declined to comment when asked whether the speaker supported a special session. Cagle’s spokesman said he was “unaware of any discussions at this time in the Senate, or with the House, about the possibility of a special legislative session.”

One thing that could give the special-session movement more support is if Deal vetoes a separate measure allowing permit holders to carry concealed guns on Georgia's public college and university campuses. The governor has not indicated how he will act on House Bill 859, although lawmakers ignored his plea for changes after it passed.

The last time there was a major veto war came in 2007, when Gov. Sonny Perdue nixed a midyear budget, including a last-minute $142 million property tax rebate. The House, led by Speaker Glenn Richardson, who pushed the tax cut, voted to override the veto, but the Senate, led by Cagle, didn’t react. A special session loomed to reconsider the midyear budget, which would have likely resuscitated the tax cut debate. But after the session, Perdue undid his veto of the budget but used a line-item veto on the tax cut.

When the next session opened in January 2008, the House voted to override 12 of Perdue’s vetoes from the previous session, but Cagle’s Senate again wouldn’t join in. The Senate agreed to a symbolic override on one minor bill.