Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) is signaling the all-clear: the tough times surrounding passage of Indiana’s controversial religious freedom law are now over.
“I think the difficult time that Indiana just passed through two weeks ago is behind us,” Pence said Tuesday, according to The Indianapolis Star.
Pence’s comments follow Indiana hiring the public relations firm Porter Novelli to repair the state’s image.
“We’ve got a great story to tell,” Pence added. “I really do believe that we are through the storm, that now’s the time to heal.”
Pence found himself under national criticism when he was poised to controversial legislation that opened the door to businesses being allowed to refuse to serve gay customers on the grounds of religious objections. Major businesses in Indiana and national figures criticized the law and Pence was eventually forced to call for a clarification.
More recently, on Monday, Pence’s communications director, Christy Denault, offered Pence her letter of resignation.
Denault stressed to TPM on Wednesday that the resignation was because she wanted to spend more time with her six-year-old triplets and she had been discussing taking other roles in the governor’s office for months.
