Home WebMail Friday, November 1, 2024, 08:26 AM | Calgary | -4.8°C | Regions Advertise Login | Our platform is in maintenance mode. Some URLs may not be available. |
Posted: 2022-07-20T18:39:06Z | Updated: 2022-07-20T18:39:06Z

House-passed legislation codifying protections for same-sex marriage is dividing Republican lawmakers in Congress after support for marriage equality hit a record high last month.

Forty-seven out of 211 House Republicans voted for the bill on Tuesday, which Democrats brought forward amid fears the Supreme Court will overturn its 2015 ruling legalizing same-sex marriage as it did for abortion rights.

Pressure is now building on the Senate to take up the legislation, which has garnered the support of a handful of Republican senators.

I want to bring this bill to the floor and were working to get the necessary Senate Republican support to ensure it would pass, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Wednesday.

Schumer didnt commit to bringing the bill to the floor soon, however. Democrats are racing to pass several other pieces of legislation before the annual August recess next month, including a package that would lower health care prices.

Scheduling a vote on the bill would be an easy win for Democrats, regardless of whether it passes or not. At a minimum, it would put GOP divisions on display ahead of the November midterm elections.

Only four Republican senators have expressed support or openness for codifying protections for gay marriage: Susan Collins (Maine), Rob Portman (Ohio), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Thom Tillis (North Carolina).

Proponents of the bill would need at least six more GOP votes to break a filibuster in the evenly divided Senate.

But many Republicans declined to state a position on the House legislation on Wednesday, dodging the question by saying they had yet to read the four-page bill. Others called it unnecessary, maintaining that there is no active threat to same-sex marriage right now.