Tenn. Governor Voids Anti-Discrimination Law

[Julie Marie]

The Christian Post
Tue, May. 24 2011
04:58 PM EDT
By Paul Stanley | Christian Post Contributor

Governor Bill Haslam signed into law the Equal Access to Intrastate Commerce Act on Monday, reversing an ordinance passed by the Nashville/Davidson County Metro Council on April 5 of this year requiring contractors with the city to agree to follow the government's rules barring discrimination against gay, lesbian and transgendered people.

The Haslam administration recently completed their first legislative session in the governor's first term. A former mayor of Knoxville, Tenn., and executive with Pilot Oil Corporation, his family's business, Haslam initially expressed concerns about telling local governments what to do.

[NikkiJ]

Haslam seems to be a strange little spud. Didn't he defund Planned Parenthood in TN too?

Oh well, a state I'll never go to.

[Julie Marie]

Most all Republicans voted against funding Planned Parenthood.  One even said on the floor that Planned Parenthood's primary activity was providing abortions and claimed that took up over 90% of their funding money.  After being called out onto the carpet on that quote, he later said to ignore what he said earlier, though he didn't say he was mistaken.

It's amazing to me that a state would tell their municipalities that they cannot pass anti-discrimination laws.  It's kind of like saying, "We like to discriminate at the state level and you people aren't going to get any grass roots efforts going to deny us that right!"

And why did the voters elect another oil family member into office?  Didn't they learn from the Bush years?

[Lisbeth]

Since this law disenfranchises the voters in municipalities from making non-discrimination laws, the U.S. Supreme Court needs to get involved based on the U. S. Constitution, Article IV, Section 4.

For that matter, they ought to rule on the so-called Defense of Marriage Act as it relates to the Constitution, Article IV, Section 1.