The House voted Wednesday to extend a program that lets religious groups restrict employment to members of their faith in hiring for community programs financed by federal grants.
Democrats failed to win approval of several amendments that would have ended the practice. The Bush administration threatened a veto of the Community Service Block Grant Act if it removed ``the current hiring autonomy of religious organizations.''
But Democrats succeeded in putting the House on record in support of extending unemployment benefits for six months for people who exhaust their state aid. Congress has refused to approve another extension of federal unemployment benefits.
An amendment authored by Rep. George Miller, D-Calif, passed by a 227-179 vote, although by itself, the measure would provide no additional money. Thirty-nine Republicans voted for the amendment.
``It's proof that there's still a lot of anxiety about unemployment and it hits Republicans as well as Democrats,'' said Bill Samuel, the AFL-CIO's legislative director.
Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, called the provision ``a cynical attempt to exploit unemployed American workers for political gain.''
The bill itself was not controversial. Block grants provide federal money to a range of anti-poverty and social services programs.
But Democrats tried to undo a provision that then-Sen. John Ashcroft of Missouri, now the attorney general, inserted into the block grant program in 1998.
``I think it's wrong to be discriminated against simply because of my religious faith,'' Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Texas, said.
Some Democrats cited an e-mail sent by the Christian group Focus on the Family to bolster this case. ``Christian charities interested in accepting federal funds would be required to ignore religious conviction in hiring -- even if potential employees practiced Islam, Judaism or no religion at all,'' the e-mail said.
Amanda Izsak, the group's federal issues analyst, said Focus on the Family accepts no federal funds. ``We're just advocating for faith-based groups who do wish to participate,'' Izsak said. ``I don't think a Muslim charity would any more rather accept a Christian believer than Christian organizations would accept a Muslim believer.''
Boehner said changing the law would discourage religious groups from seeking federal grants. ``This has been the law of the land in this program for six years,'' he said. ``I challenge anyone to come to the floor to say where there has been a problem, because there hasn't been a problem.''