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The Republican governor of Indiana thought he was doing what 19 other states and the federal government had done -- without inciting national controversy -- by signing a new religious freedom law. When charges that the law opens doors to discrimination against gays and lesbians came, his technical arguments about what is and isn't allowed under the law were feeble in the face of outrage.

Pence found himself confronting a new political reality in a country where battles over gay rights now appear to have a clear winner.

READ: Pence says he wasn't expecting backlash

And by signing a law that Republicans had thought offered sturdier ground -- religious liberty -- than the same-sex marriage debate they're close to losing, Pence brought on the force of a fully realigned coalition. Instead of remaining in a tense partnership with social conservatives, fiscally focused Republicans and businesses that now see opposing gay rights as far too costly broke away from their traditional GOP allies and flatly rejected Indiana's law.

They'd also planted an important flag, making clear that they'd come to view the legislation as a new, coded proxy for the same old issue.

That such a view hardened so quickly only further infuriated conservatives who feel their religious freedom is under assault. And it raised the stakes for Republican presidential contenders who now must articulate a more effective version of his argument.

The imbroglio has wounded Pence, a sometimes-mentioned potential White House aspirant. More important, though, is that the 2016 Republican field was drawn into the fight. And they sided with Pence.

They had little choice: A competitive primary means Republican candidates must win over a much more socially conservative set of voters before they can even begin courting a more diverse general electorate.

That, polling data suggests, could be a ticking time bomb that hurts the party in a general election.

SEE: Arkansas poised to adopt religious freedom law

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Indiana Gov. Mike Pence: First victim of America's new culture war