US which lectures the world on religious freedom has a deeply religious Congress

@prashanthamine

Mumbai: The United States of America (USA) which lectures the world on religious freedom has a deeply religious Congress, according to a recently release report by Pew Research Center (PRC) on the religious composition of the new 117^th Congress. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris who is also a Democrat Senator, California has declared herself to be a Baptist. Interestingly enough the religious minorities in the USA seem to prefer the Democrats more than the Republicans.

Over the years since 1961 increasingly both the House of Representatives and the Senate has become more Protestant than Christian or Catholic. Though still both the houses are dominated by Christians.

Nancy Pelosi (Democrat, California) who recently won a narrow re-election for the Speakers post in the Congress has declared herself to be a Catholic. She has been one of the fiercest opponents of out-going Republican US President Donald Trump.

The PRC report takes into account religious affiliations of 531 Congressmen and Senators at the Capitol Hill. Both the chambers of the Congress have Protestant majorities. The US population continues to become less Christian and the Congress is increasingly becoming less Catholic and more Protestant. The Protestants are known for their strong views on issues like abortion, though the report now suggests that American Protestants are a divided lot on the issue.

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Nearly all non-Christian members of the Congress are Democrats. One of the reasons could be the liberal visa policy of the Democrats. Besides Kamala Harris, the other two Indian origin Congressmen who have declared Hindu as their religion – Ro Khanna (California) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (Illinois) are also Democrats.

The other Congressmen who have declared their religious affiliations include 3 Muslim and 2 Buddhist, all of them are Democrats. Congressmen Andre Carson (Indiana), Ilhan Omar (Minnesota) and Rashida Talib (Michigan) have declared themselves to be Muslim. While Hank Johnson (Georgia) and Mazie K Hirono (Hawaii), both Democrats have declared themselves to be Buddhist.

It is also indicative of why majority of Indian Americans prefer Democrats over Republicans who prefer strict visa and immigration laws. It is probably one reason why Prime Minister Narendra Modi had pitched for out-going US President Donald Trump in his failed re-election bid in November 2020. It also points to the need for the Republicans to improve and increase their ties with the powerful Indian American community.

The religious composition and in percentage terms the 117^th Congress looks like this: 468 Congressmen have declared themselves as Christian which is 88.1%, 294 are Protestant (55.4%), Catholic 158 (29.8%), Unspecified-Others 96 (18.1%), Baptist 66 (12.4%), Methodist 35 (6.6%), Jewish 33 (6.2%), Anglican – Episcopal 29 (4.9%), Presbyterian 24 (4.5%), Lutheran 22 (4.1%), Nondenom Protestant 12 (2.3%), Muslim 3 (0.6%), Buddhist 2 (0.4%), Hindu 2 (0.4%) and Don’t know-Refused 18 (3.4%).

Out of the 294 total Protestants, 236 (54.5%) dominate the Congress and 58 are in the Senate. Out of the 236 Protestants, 141 are Republicans and 95 are Democrats. Out of the total 134 Catholics (30.9%), 77 are Republicans and 57 Democrats. The entire lot of 25 (5.8%) Jewish Congressmen are Democrats.

Interestingly enough out of the 464 Congressmen, 67 are Freshman class (first timers or newcomers).

In the Senate, 58 Senators (59.2%) are Protestants of which 21 are Democrats and 37 are Republican. Out of the total 24 (24.5%) Senators are Catholic, of which 14 are Democrats and 10 are Republican.

Since 1961, that is the 87^th Congress to the 117^th Congress in 2021 in terms of 531 Congress seats, there were 100 Catholics in 1961, which have risen to 158 in 2021. Likewise, Protestants who were 398 in 1961 have somewhat declined to be 294 in the 117^th Congress in 2021-22.

For the first time in many years there is a slender majority in the 117^th Congress house and a tie in the Senate. In the Congress the Democrats have 222 members, while the Republicans have 211 members. Next year the Democrats are expected to have a slim majority in the Congress. In the Senate, both the Republican and Democrats are tied at 50 seats each. In such a situation, to break the deadlock the Vice President has a Tiebreaking Vote to ensure that the government legislation is passed by the upper house.