Passage of a measure that would protect gay marriage rights nationwide crossed a key threshold Wednesday when the Senate defeated a filibuster and set the stage for final approval shortly. Senators voted 62-37 to move the Respect for Marriage Act to the Senate for an up-or-down vote in the near future. Sixty votes were needed to overcome the filibuster and send it to the floor.
“Together with broad bipartisan support, the Senate will provide certainty to millions of Americans in loving marriages and enshrine into law the basic protections afforded all Americans while respecting our country’s critical principle of religious liberty,” said Arizona Democratic Sen. Krysten Sinema, one of the negotiators for the bill, on the Senate floor prior to Wednesday’s vote.
The measure would enshrine marriage equality months after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas raised the specter of reversing the 2015 landmark Obergefell v. Hodges decision recognizing same sex unions. Thomas called on his fellow justices to “reconsider” other rights established by the high court in the wake of its decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, including access to contraception and gay marriage, in an opinion that sparked an outcry on the left.
Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz voiced his opposition to the bipartisan legislation in a September episode of his podcast, saying the bill would punish religious institutions that use a “biblical definition of marriage” through a loss of funding. “This bill, without a religious liberty protection, would have massive consequences across our country, weaponizing the Biden administration to go and target universities, K-12 schools, social services organizations, churches and strip them all of their tax-status,” Cruz said. “That is enormously consequential.”
In July, the House passed the bill in a 267-157 vote – all 220 Democrats voted in favor, with 47 Republicans also supporting the Respect for Marriage Act, which also safeguards interracial marriages. If the Senate passes the legislation Wednesday, the House would have to vote on the amendment for final passage.
Rawr
Article URL : https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/11/16/schumer-senate-vote-gay-marriage/10704463002/