Why Are These Congressmen Still So Leery of Cosponsoring ENDA?

Most Americans believe that it's already illegal to fire someone for being gay -- but in reality, an employee can be fired for placing a photo of their same-sex spouse on their desk in 29 states. In 32 states, workers can be fired for being transgender. While President Obama has announced a series of executive orders to address this issue to the best of his constitutionally limited ability, advocates are still pushing for broader, more far-reaching employment protections for LGBT Americans.

That's why the Employment Non-Discrimination Act -- a piece of federal legislation that would make it illegal to fire, decline to promote, or refuse to hire someone based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity -- has been introduced in every Congress except one since 1996.

And despite historic passage through the U.S. Senate last November -- with 10 Republican senators casting votes in favor of the bill -- it remains stalled in the legislative molasses known as the U.S. House of Representatives. House Speaker John Boehner has repeatedly told reporters that there is "no way" ENDA will pass the House this year, and has thus far refused to even table the legislation for a vote.

That's led advocates for workplace equality to seek alternate routes to build support for the embattled legislation. A new effort from LGBT advocacy group Freedom to Work hopes to build majority support for ENDA within the House, ideally offering an unavoidable signal to Speaker Boehner that a majority of Americans -- and members of Congress in the chamber over which he presides -- support such commonplace protections.

Freedom to Work's newest campaign, the 218 Project, aims to convince a majority of U.S. Representatives -- 218, to be precise -- to sign on as cosponsors of the legislation. There are currently 205 cosponsors of ENDA, including seven Republicans.

Throughout the summer, Freedom to Work will make weekly announcements identifying groups of five potential ENDA sponsors who are as yet uncommitted to voting for or cosponsoring the legislation. Using shareable graphics hosted on the 218 Project's website, Freedom to Work will encourage constituents to contact their lawmakers and those in other districts through Facebook, Twitter, email, and phone, urging uncommitted representatives to add their names to the growing list of ENDA cosponsors in the House.

Last month, Freedom to Work announced 10 lawmakers who the organization believes would be amenable to cosponsoring ENDA. The representatives hailed from across the geographic and political spectrum -- from Democrats in Illinois and Texas to Republicans in Florida and Pennsylvania. This week, the organization puts the spotlight on five more lawmakers who it believes could be convinced by constituents to cosponsor ENDA, including Democrats in Mississippi and Georgia, and Republicans in Ohio and Washington.

Meet the lawmakers below.

Rep. John Barrow
Democrat, Georgia

Barrow, of Augusta, may be a Democrat, but he does not always side with his party. Currently, he is not a cosponsor of any of the major pieces of LGBT-focused legislation in this Congress, and he once even voted yes on the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have defined marriage in the U.S. Constitution as a right only for opposite-sex couples.

"Representative Barrow is one of the remaining holdout Democrats who has not yet cosponsored ENDA even though polling shows that a majority of Georgia's voters support LGBT workplace protections," says Christian Berle of Freedom to Work.

While Barrow's office did not return a call for comment on whether he would cosponsor ENDA, he did vote to repeal "don't ask, don't tell" in 2010. He also voted for the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009 as well as the LGBT-inclusive Violence Against Women Act in 2013.

"He voted to repeal the discriminatory 'don't ask, don't tell' law," Berle says, "and it only makes sense that Barrow would want to make sure that an openly gay veteran does not get refused civilian employment for discriminatory reasons after he or she comes home from serving our country with honor."

Still, Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality, told the Washington Blade earlier this year that Barrow's newly redrawn district has allowed him to lean more conservatively in his statements and voting. In May a group of Barrow's constituents, including faith community leaders and a retired schoo teacher, visited his Augusta office to discuss the importance of ENDA.

Rep. Bennie Thompson
Democrat, Mississippi

Thompson has voted for multiple gay-supportive bills in the past, including the 2007 version of ENDA. Additionally, he voted to repeal "don't ask, don't tell" (as well as multiple Republican-backed amendments to stifle the repeal's potency) and to support of the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act and the Violence Against Women Act.

"Representative Thompson has already voted for ENDA once, and as the ranking Democrat on the Homeland Security Committee, he remains the only member of the Democratic Leadership who is not yet a cosponsor of this bill to create much needed LGBT workplace protections," says Berle.

His district includes Jackson and Greenville, both cities where local ordinances that have banned LGBT discrimination.

"He'd be following the lead of local Mississippi leaders in cities he represents -- Jackson and Greenville -- in passing laws to make sure nobody faces discrimination because of who they are or whom they love," Berle says.

Like Barrow, he is one of only a handful of remaining Democrats who have not cosponsored ENDA or said whether they would vote for it in 2014. Also like Barrow, however, Thompson voted in favor of the the antigay amendment to constitutionally deny same-sex couples the freedom to marry.

Dave Reichert
Republican, Washington
Though Reichert's home state of Washington grants the right to marry to same-sex couples, and the state has its own LGBT workplace protection policy, Reichart still has not voiced his support for this current version of ENDA. He did vote for the bill in 2007, as well as "don't ask, don't tell" repeal, the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act, and the 2013 Violence Against Women Act.

In 2013 he said he had not figured out what he would do for ENDA yet, but he wanted to "do what's best for America" when it comes to banning discrimination against LGBT workers, according to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

"I've always been supportive of nondiscrimination in the workplace," he told the P-I. "And that's the way it should be in America. People need to be treated fairly, without bullying, and evaluated on how they do their jobs."

While Reichert said shortly after the U.S. Senate approved ENDA in November 2013 that he would head back to Washington to review the bill, his office has not informed with The Advocate whether he will sponsor this bill before this session ends.

"Congressman Reichart was one of 35 Republicans to vote for ENDA in 2007, so we're hopeful he will support LGBT workplace protections once again," Berle says. "He has consistently voted in favor of pro-equality legislation since then, supporting the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act, repeal of 'don't ask, don't tell' in 2010 and for the LGBT-inclusive Violence Against Women Act last year. As a Republican congressman from a blue state that long ago passed LGBT workplace protections in the state legislature, Reichert would be doing the politically wise thing by cosponsoring ENDA -- and of course it's also the right thing to do."

Pat Tiberi
Republican, Ohio

Rep. Pat Tiberi's district in Ohio is just outside of the LGBT-friendly Columbus, which has already passed its own LGBT workplace protections. However, Tiberi, a confidant of fellow Ohioan and ENDA-averse Speaker John Boehner, seems to have hang-ups about providing protections for transgender workers. He voted for the version of ENDA that did not include protections for transgender people and has signaled that he opposes federal job protections to transgender workers.

"Representative Tiberi voted for ENDA in 2007, and now we're urging him to take the next step by cosponsoring this critically important LGBT legislation," Berle says. "Speaker John Boehner represents a nearby congressional district in Ohio, and Tiberi's ENDA support and cosponsorship would send a strong message to the Speaker about the future of the Republican party."

Freedom to Work also points out that Sen. Rob Portman, a fellow Republican from Ohio, suffered no political repercussions when he voted for the fully inclusive ENDA that passed the Senate in November.

David Joyce
Like Tiberi, Rep. David Joyce represents Ohio, the home of Sen. Rob Portman, who voted for a fully inclusive ENDA in November. His district, located in the suburbs of Cleveland, currently has a local workplace protection policy for LGBT people.

"Representative Joyce is one of the newer members of Congress, and he took his first pro-LGBT vote last year, backing the LGBT-inclusive Violence Against Women Act," Berle says. "We're urging Joyce to look to the good example set by Ohio's Republican senator, Rob Portman, who voted for a fully inclusive ENDA last year. If enough Ohio voters contact Congressman Joyce through email, social media, and phone, we are hopeful he'll become an ENDA cosponsor."

Late last month, a group of LGBT constituents met with Joyce's staff, at which time it was revealed that the first-term congressman is indeed interested in supporting ENDA, whether it's in the form of a vote or a cosponsorship. His office did not, however, return multiple calls for comment from The Advocate on the legislation.