Tag Archives: marriage equality

USA Today reports: The House voted Thursday to approve historic legislation that will federally protect same-sex and interracial marriage rights. Passage of the bill moves it to President Joe Biden who is expected to sign it into law. The Respect for Marriage Act, passed by the Senate last week, guarantees federal recognition of any marriage between two people if it was valid …

The Associated Press reports: The House is set to give final approval Thursday to legislation protecting same-sex marriages in federal law, a monumental step in a decadeslong battle for nationwide recognition of such unions that reflects a stunning turnaround in societal attitudes. A law requiring all states to recognize same-sex marriages would come as a a relief for hundreds of …

Via email from the Family Research Council: Another one of the 47 House Republicans who voted for the so-called Respect for Marriage Act has withdrawn his support, charging Democrats with “failing to provide legitimate safeguards for faith-based organizations” that hold “deeply-held religious beliefs” about natural marriage. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) announced on Monday that he will reverse his vote in …

Changing America reports: The number of same-sex households in the U.S. surpassed 1 million for the first time, according to new census data. There were about 1.2 million same-sex households in 2021, the U.S. Census Bureau reported. About 710,000 of those households were married, while 500,000 were unmarried. The percent of same-sex households included in the American household population as …

The BBC reports: A Tokyo court has upheld a ban on same-sex marriage in Japan, but also said that the ban was a violation of human rights. The compensation case was brought by four couples who claimed the law was discriminatory. Japan is currently the only G7 nation that does not recognise same-sex marriage. Campaigners have welcomed the ruling as …

A few quotes from a lengthy Politico recap: Sen. Thom Tillis has helped ink plenty of bipartisan deals over the past two years. Tillis said that it shouldn’t have shocked people to see him so out front on same-sex marriage way back in July: “That’s probably the libertarian side of me.” “I do feel that the young populations are much …

The Associated Press reports: The passage of the legislation with support from both parties is an extraordinary sign of the shifting politics on the issue and a measure of relief for the hundreds of thousands of same-sex couples who have married since the Supreme Court’s 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges decision that legalized gay marriage nationwide. Senate Democrats are moving quickly, …

NPR reports: Lawmakers are moving forward with the vote Tuesday afternoon after securing essential Republican support during a procedural vote on Monday. With bipartisan support, the legislation is expected to clear the Senate Tuesday, then head back to the House where it is expected to be passed quickly and sent to the president’s desk to be signed into law. The …

Via earlier press release from Sen. Mike Lee: My simple, common-sense amendment would prohibit the federal government from retaliating against any person or group for adhering to sincerely held religious beliefs and moral convictions about marriage. In no way would my amendment impair the RFMA’s ability to perform its simple, stated purpose: to protect same-sex marriage against an extremely unlikely …

Congress Minutes reports: Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the chamber will vote on three GOP amendments to the legislation — one each from Sens. Mike Lee (Utah), Marco Rubio (Fla.) and James Lankford (Okla.) — on Tuesday before voting on final passage. Lee’s, expanding religious protections, set at a 60-vote threshold. Lankford’s amendment, set at a majority threshold. And Rubio’s, …

The Hill reports: Senators ultimately voted 61-35 to advance the amendment to the Respect for Marriage Act that includes language related to religious liberty and conscience protections under the Constitution and federal law. It would also continues to prohibit polygamous marriage. But the voting was held open for almost two-and-a-half hours as senators wrangled over whether additional amendments could come up …

From the haters at the Heritage Foundation: Ahead of another vote on the so-called Respect for Marriage Act, most of the 12 GOP senators who previously voted for the legislation are refusing to divulge whether they support Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee’s amendment protecting Americans’ religious freedom. Following the Thanksgiving holiday, the Senate will hold a procedural vote Monday on …

Politico reports: The Senate is expected to vote this evening to end debate on a substitute amendment to the bipartisan marriage equality bill that narrowly advanced before the Thanksgiving recess with 12 Republican votes to clear a procedural hurdle. Final passage is still ahead. The bill would ensure that the federal government recognize a same-sex marriage if it was valid …

Bloomberg News reports: India’s Supreme Court has agreed to examine a petition that seeks legal recognition of same-sex marriage, in a development that could build on a string of rulings expanding protection for the LGBTQ community. The petition, which was filed this month by a couple, evoked India’s Special Marriage Act, a law that originally legalized interfaith unions. The petitioners …

Glenn Beck’s right wing The Blaze reports: The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, is spending more than $1 million to run advertisements during the Thanksgiving weekend NFL and college football games to warn Americans that the new Respect for Marriage Act will “expose religious schools and nonprofits to lawsuits,” Fox News Digital reported. It is the biggest campaign the …

From the far-right Catholic outlet LifeSiteNews: Former U.S. vice president Mike Pence gave mixed answers when asked about the federal codification of same-sex “marriages,” suggesting he personally believes in a Biblical view of marriage but recognizes the U.S. Supreme Court’s radical redefinition of marriage established in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015). in an interview with CBS News’ “Face the Nation” that …

From the Family Research Council: Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee is urging the 12 Republican senators who voted for the so-called Respect for Marriage Act to oppose cloture on the legislation unless his amendment is added to the bill. “The free exercise of religion is absolutely essential to the health of our Republic,” the senator wrote in a “Dear Colleague” letter first obtained …

Via press release from hate group leader Tony Perkins: The U.S. Senate today voted to proceed to the so-called Respect for Marriage Act, clearing the 60-vote threshold for cloture by a vote of 62-37 and paving the way for a simple majority vote on final passage. Sens. Roy Blunt, Richard Burr, Shelley Capito, Susan Collins, Joni Ernst, Cynthia Lummis, Lisa …

The Washington Post reports: The Respect for Marriage Act would require that people be considered married in any state as long as the marriage was valid in the state where it was performed. The bill would also repeal the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which defined marriage as the union of one man and one woman and allowed states to …

The New York Times reports: The Senate on Wednesday afternoon will hold a crucial test vote on legislation to provide federal protections for same-sex marriage, with proponents in both parties expressing fresh hope that they had at least 10 Republican votes necessary to break a Republican filibuster and move it through the 50-50 chamber. In the wake of midterm elections …