rick-snyder-2012-state-of-the-state.jpg

Gov. Rick Snyder has a reputation for being a "moderate," but he's repeatedly pandered to the religious right.

(AP File Photo)

It's about the adults, not the children.

No, I'm not talking about education reform. I'm talking about GOP Gov. Rick Snyder signing legislation that will, in the not-too-distant future, be regarded as Jim Crow is today.

The bills permit religious adoption agencies -- which last year received roughly $10 million in taxpayer dollars -- to discriminate against LGBT and single people. (The USA Today headline summed it up perfectly: "Michigan law allows adoption agencies to say no to gays.")

This isn't about the 13,000 kids languishing in Michigan's foster care system. They desperately need loving parents, no matter if they're gay or straight.

But now Michigan has sanctioned narrowing the pool of people who can give these children happy homes -- for no good reason.

There's no credible evidence that children of gay parents are harmed (the world's largest study actually showed they're happier and healthier because their households are more equitable and harmonious).

So Michigan's new laws are about appeasing adults.

They're a sop to vocal social conservatives who can't accept that the world has changed (60 percent of Americans now support same-sex marriage) and those running religious adoption agencies, who are happy to take government money, but feel they're above following non-discrimination laws.

The anti-gay legislation codifies existing practice in Michigan. So, why were these bills rushed through?

Ah, that's because the knuckle-dragging, Republican-controlled Legislature is terrified the U.S. Supreme Court will soon rule in favor of gay marriage. And that's why Snyder signed legislation less than 24 hours after it hit his desk.

But the question many are asking -- including dedicated fans of the governor who insist he's a "moderate" -- is why he felt the need to sign these discriminatory bills and do so on the religious right's accelerated timetable.

It's hard to find anyone, Democrat and Republican alike, who believes Snyder is a socially conservative true believer. I think Detroit Free Press Editorial Page Editor Stephen Henderson has it about right in saying the governor just isn't that into social issues.

But time and time again, he's rubber-stamped the religious right's agenda of making it harder to get an abortion and banning benefits for state employees' gay partners. Snyder has even OK'd defending Michigan's gay marriage ban before the Supreme Court, while other Republican governors like Chris Christie gave up.

Sure, there are some bright lights of tolerance that reasonable folks can hang onto. Snyder said we should have a discussion on adding the LGBT community to the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act. But he's never committed to signing legislation -- not exactly a profile in courage.

He did vow to veto an Indiana-style Religious Freedom Restoration Act. But given Snyder's willingness to quickly sign "RFRA for adoption," it's clear that wasn't a principled stance. He was responding to pressure from national business leaders, whose companies smartly enacted gay-friendly policies years ago.

You can't excuse Snyder's capitulation to social conservatives as mere electoral pandering. He's term-limited and thus unshackled by the GOP primary imperative to prove his right-wing bona fides. He's not running for president, either.

The most generous take is that Snyder remains a political novice who doesn't appreciate, unlike the masterful John Engler, that a governor can tell the Legislature to take a hike.

The not-so-flattering view is that Snyder just isn't very committed to civil rights and equality and is content to let women and LGBTs fend for themselves.

Regardless, the result is the same: Snyder just helped Michigan take a giant leap backward.

And really, what does it say about the current state of the GOP that one of its most prominent "moderates" would do something so reactionary?

Susan J. Demas is Publisher and Editor of Inside Michigan Politics, a nationally acclaimed, biweekly political newsletter. She can be reached at susan@sjdemas.com. Follow her on Twitter here.