In the wake of the historic DOMA ruling, Congress is moving in two wildly different directions on gay marriage. First the Democrats – Gay Star News reports:
US Democrats Senator Dianne Feinstein and Representative Jerrold Nadler have re-introduced a bill to repeal the rest of the Defense of Marriage Act after the US Supreme Court struck out Section 3 of the law which prevented over a thousand federal benefits going to same-sex married couples. The Respect for Marriage Act would repeal the entire Defense of Marriage Act and would allow those benefits to flow to legally married same-sex couples whether they reside in a state where same-sex marriages are performed or not. ‘Today’s Supreme Court ruling in United States v. Windsor affirms what we stand for as Americans – the guarantee that every person and every family is given equal respect under the law,’ Nadler said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the GOP plans to reintroduce a constitutional amendment to ban marriage equality throughout the country, led by a Kansas republican (no surprise). Towleroad.com reports:
Representative Tim Huelskamp (R-Kansas) is waisting no time in his push to to see gay marriage outlawed nationwide. Today, Huelskamp announced his intention to introduce the Federal Marriage Amendment later this week. The Huffington Post reports: Huelskamp said he plans to introduce the Federal Marriage Amendment later this week, a measure that would define marriage as between one man and one woman. DOMA did the same thing, but was a federal law, not a constitutional amendment. As such, the Federal Marriage Act is more far-reaching but also a tougher climb. It requires the support of two-thirds of the House and Senate, and ratification by three-fourths of the states, or 38 states. “This would trump the Supreme Court,” Huelskamp told The Huffington Post.
So much for a new direction for the GOP…
