[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 82 (Thursday, May 11, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2919-S2920]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Wyden, Mr. 
        Franken, Mr. Markey, Mrs. Gillibrand, Mr. Whitehouse, Ms. 
        Harris, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Booker, Mrs. Shaheen, Ms. Hirono, Mr. 
        Coons, Mr. Bennet, Mr. Merkley, Ms. Hassan, Mr. Reed, Mr. 
        Blumenthal, Mr. Durbin, and Mr. Leahy):
  S. 1114. A bill to nullify the effect of the recent Executive order 
laying a foundation for discrimination against LGBTQ individuals, 
women, religious minorities, and others under the pretext of religious 
freedom; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President. I rise today to join with my 
colleagues in introducing a rescission bill to nullify President 
Trump's Executive Order 13798, titled ``Promoting Free Speech and 
Religious Liberty.'' Unfortunately, this Executive Order does not live 
up to its title. Instead, it furthers the aim of this administration to 
diminish critical protections for women, minorities, and LGBT 
Americans.
  I am deeply troubled by Section 3 of the Order, which paves the way 
for the Trump administration to roll back protections to preventive 
health services under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), especially for 
women and LGBT individuals. Through new regulations issued pursuant to 
this Order, companies could use ``conscience-based'' objections to deny 
their employees coverage for preventive services that they have a right 
to under the ACA. This means that because of their employers' moral 
objection, women could lose access to contraception, and those in the 
LGBT community could lose access to essential services, including 
cancer screenings or counseling for domestic violence.
  I respect that we all have religious and moral convictions, but it is 
wrong to put employers' religious views above individuals' rights to 
access basic health care. I also note that this section of the Order 
invites members of the President's Cabinet to eliminate an 
accommodation President Obama administration made allowing religiously 
affiliated nonprofit employers, including large universities and 
hospital systems, to opt out of providing their employees with 
contraception coverage based on religious objections.
  Importantly, women working for objecting employers can receive 
contraception coverage directly through their insurance companies. 
Seven federal courts of appeals have upheld this accommodation in the 
face of religiously based challenges. But with this Order, the 
President signals that his administration is likely to do away with the 
accommodation, which would deny contraception access to women whose 
bosses want to make this important and intimate decision for them.
  The Order also directs the Attorney General to issue guidance to all 
agencies on ``religious liberty protections in Federal law.'' This 
language is concerning as it opens the door for the Attorney General to 
eliminate protections in federal rules and regulations for LGBT 
individuals and minorities. The Attorney General's duty is to enforce 
and protect the civil rights and constitutional freedoms of all 
Americans. This Order's direction for guidance that could change the 
implementation of critical rules affording equal treatment for all in 
America is a disturbing step backward. For example, there are rules 
protecting same-sex spouses' ability to visit their partners in the 
hospital and ensuring that LGBT individuals have equal access to 
federally funded emergency housing. Under this provision, however, new 
religious exemptions may be implemented to weaken these protections. 
Shelters could turn LGBT families away because of who they love. As the 
Human Rights Campaign has described, this provision opens the door to a 
``license to discriminate'' even where basic services funded with 
government dollars are at stake.
  This Executive Order opens the door to weakening the enforcement of 
longstanding tax laws against individuals, houses of worship, and other 
religious organizations engaging in political campaign speech. Notably, 
the Johnson Amendment was proposed by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1954 and is 
part of our tax code. It prohibits 501(c)(3) tax-exempt entities, 
including churches, from engaging in political campaign activity on 
behalf of candidates. The Johnson Amendment does not bar nonpartisan 
voter education and registration activities, which are important to a 
strong democracy, nor does it prohibit speech on moral issues.
  The President has promised to repeal the Johnson Amendment. Doing so 
could have a significant impact on political campaign fundraising and 
would change the current tax consideration for certain political 
contributions. While repeal of the Johnson Amendment is something only 
Congress has the power to do, this Executive Order clearly indicates 
the administration's intention to undermine the separation

[[Page S2920]]

between tax-exempt charities and religious organizations and political 
campaign activity in the tax code.
  It remains to be seen whether the President and the administration 
will implement this Order in ways that will realize our worst fears 
about the kind of discrimination it could enable. But we know for 
certain that this Order represents a disturbing statement of principles 
and values. Instead of seeking even greater protections from 
discrimination, this administration has set the stage to undermine 
protections, especially for women and LGBT individuals. That is not 
what our country stands for.
  Mr. President, I strongly urge my colleagues to join me in supporting 
the bill I am introducing today to nullify this troubling Executive 
Order.
  Thank you. I yield the floor.

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