Indiana Gov. Mike Pence aggressively defended Indiana's religious freedom law Tuesday but said he wants a bill on his desk by week's end "making it clear the law does not allow businesses the right to deny services to anyone."

"This law does not give anyone the right to discriminate," Pence said at a news conference. "But I can appreciate that that has become the perception."

The state's Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which takes effect July 1, would prohibit laws that "substantially burden" a person's freedom of religion unless the government can prove a compelling interest in imposing that burden.

The law has drawn sharp criticism from gay and LGBT groups and some corporations. Nine corporate CEOs sent Pence an open letter asking that the state "immediately enact new legislation that makes it clear that neither the Religious Freedom Restoration Act nor any other Indiana law can be used to justify discrimination based upon sexual orientation or gender identity."

Pence called his proposal "a clarification, but also a fix." As he has repeatedly since signing the bill last week, he pressed his argument that the law and his state are not discriminatory.

Pence has consistently blamed "some on the left" and the national media with mischaracterizing the bill. He again argued that the law mirrors the federal law signed by President Clinton in 1993.

"That may be true only if you're using a funhouse mirror," Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-NY, said Tuesday. Schumer said the federal law is less broad and was designed to protect individuals from government interference. The Indiana law also protects private companies and corporations, Schumer said.

"This issue for me is first about religious liberty," Pence said earlier Tuesday while pitching his case on Fox News. "Indiana is open for business. If we have to make adjustments to this law to make it clear that this law as never intended to give businesses the right to turn away customers on the basis of sexual orientation, we will fix that."

On Saturday, thousands of people gathered in downtown Indianapolis to protest. Some Indiana business leaders have balked, led by Indianapolis-based Angie's List, which put off a planned $40 million expansion.

The corporate uprising isn't just a local issue: Gap Inc. and Levi Strauss & Co. issued astatement saying laws such as Indiana's "allow people and businesses to deny service to people based on their sexual orientation (and) turn back the clock on equality and foster a culture of intolerance."

Pence has been working tirelessly to patch his state's image, writing an op-ed for Tuesday's Wall Street Journal blasting the media for characterizing the law as a "license to discriminate."

"I abhor discrimination. I believe in the Golden Rule that you should 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you.' If I saw a restaurant owner refuse to serve a gay couple, I wouldn't eat there anymore."

Pence has his supporters. On Monday, some leading GOP presidential hopefuls lined up behind Pence on the issue. Former Florida governor Jeb Bush, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida expressed support for Pence and the Indiana law.

"This law simply says the government has to have a level of burden to be able to establish that there's been some kind of discrimination," Bush said during a radio interview with conservative host Hugh Hewitt. "This is really an important value for our country … where you can respect and be tolerant of people's lifestyles, but allow for people of faith to be able to exercise theirs."

Cruz issued a statement lauding Pence for "holding the line to protect religious liberty in the Hoosier State. Indiana is giving voice to millions of courageous conservatives across the country who are deeply concerned about the ongoing attacks upon our personal liberties."

Rubio told Fox News that no one would support refusing to serve a gay couple in a restaurant, but added that "the flip side is … should a photographer be punished for refusing to do a wedding that their faith teaches them is not one that is valid in the eyes of God?" (Source: USA Today)

Story Date: April 1, 2015