Quick Fact Update - Refusal of Service Bill in Kansas

Update 

Yesterday I wrote about Kansas' House advancing a bill that would give any business or individual, public or private, the right to refuse service to anyone based solely on their sexual orientation. 
 http://whateyethynk-politics.blogspot.com/2014/02/quick-notes-same-sex-rights-this-week.html

The bill was expected to easily pass in the Senate where Republicans outnumber Democrats 32-8. However, Senate President Susan Wagle confirmed late on Friday that she would not present the bill to the Senate for a vote. "I believe that when you hire police officers or a fireman that they have no choice in who they serve.  They serve anyone who's vulnerable, any age, any race, any sexual orientation."

Proponents fired back that anyone who did not feel comfortable serving a gay citizen would be required to find someone else to take their place.  (The humiliation of being refused service in a restaurant, shop or government office was apparently not seen as a problem by the bill's supporters.  And I'm sure the gay heart attack victim would be equally comforted by the surrogate requirement while waiting for a different EMS technician to be called to the scene.)

Ms. Wagle's statement sounded fair and noble, until I looked further and found that the Kansas Chamber of Commerce had created a Facebook page dedicated to stopping the Refusal of Service bill that garnered 50,000 "likes".  

Thomas Witt, executive director of the Kansas Equality Coalition said "Political pages here, if they get 1,000 'likes,' they're pretty successful.  This has exploded in this state.  And it blew up in their faces."

In a further statement, Ms. Wagle said, "I believe the intent of the House was to protect religious liberties. We respect that, but the business implications are going to harm the practice of employment in Kansas."

I'll take the win against this discriminatory bill anyway I can get it, and I'd like to believe that Ms. Wagle recognized that aspect of the bill and refused to support it; but the cynic in me looks at Ms. Wagle's second statement and finds it is probably the more honest.  Kansas businesses calling for its failure had a lot more to do with the bill's demise than a sudden awakening of the Republican Party's quiescent sense of fairness.  Money always gets the bigger microphone.