Four House Republicans Vote Against Religious Freedom Commission

Four House Republicans voted against funding for the bipartisan United States Coommission on International Religious Freedom Monday after the act passed in the Senate.

The Senate passed the bill in July by unanimous consent after Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced the legislation to reauthorize the commission, which monitors the state of religious liberty across the globe.

Monday’s vote was to fund the commission until the 2024 fiscal year and needed a 2/3 majority to pass.

House Democrats voted unanimously to fund the commission 207-0, while 13 members did not vote. Thirteen Republicans also did not vote.

Republicans voted in favor of voting to fund the commission 195-4. Reps. Louie Gohmert (R-TX), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Thomas Massie (R-KY), and Chip Roy (R-TX) each voted no.

None had explained their votes publicly as of 11 p.m. ET.

The bipartisan commission was created by the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act. Its nine members assess the state of religious freedom and report their findings to the executive and legislative branches.

“USCIRF monitors the universal right to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) abroad; makes policy recommendations to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress; and tracks the implementation of these recommendations,” the commission states. “While USCIRF is independent from the State Department, the Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom is a non-voting member.”

Members of the commission are also encouraged to engage with the public and the media to bring public awareness to issues abroad.

In its latest report, the committee recommended Nigeria be deemed a “Country of Particular Concern,” noting its people face “violence impacting worship”

The report states the country’s population is affected by “localized religious discrimination” and the “politicization of religion.”

Watch above, via C-SPAN.