The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) would be repealed and same-sex and multiracial couples would have federal protections under the Respect for Marriage Act, which the House approved on Tuesday.
47 Republicans joined every Democrat in voting in favor of the bill, which passed 267-157.
This week, congressional Democrats launched their legislative response to Justice Clarence Thomas’ concurring opinion calling for the Supreme Court’s rulings on same-sex marriage and access to contraception to be reexamined.
Lawmakers held votes on two bills to allay concerns that more rights might be curtailed.
Despite the Supreme Court’s decisions in U.S. v. Windsor and Obergefell v. Hodges to invalidate parts of DOMA, the statute is still in effect.
The Right to Contraception Act, which if passed would give people a statutory right to access birth control, protect a variety of contraceptive methods, and guarantee that medical professionals have the right to offer contraception services to patients, will also be discussed by the lower chamber later this week.
“Democrats in the House are defending our freedom and liberties without waiting for elections.
We are currently battling to prevent corporate price gouging, maintain the legality of abortion and contraception “Monday, Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the house, tweeted.
“We won’t stand by as Republicans violate our liberties and enrich corporate interests.”
Republican Steve Scalise, the House Minority Whip from Louisiana, predicted that while most Republicans would likely vote against the contraception bill, they would be divided on the same-sex marriage proposal before the vote.
Both bills are still anticipated to pass the Democratic-controlled House and join two other laws intended to safeguard access to abortion that have cleared the House last week and are pending Senate action.
But obtaining Senate approval is a challenging task given that Republicans and Democrats both hold 50 seats in the upper chamber.
Any bill must receive the support of at least 10 Senate Republicans in order to progress.
The bills protecting same-sex marriage and access to contraception may or may not suffer the same fate as the two abortion-related measures, one of which would enshrine the right to an abortion in federal law and the other of which would prohibit states from interfering with a woman’s right to travel for the procedure.
One Republican, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, supports the marriage equality proposal, while Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska stated that she supports federal protections for contraception and same-sex marriage.
Since the legislation was approved by the House, several Republicans have also said they’ll support it: Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said he “probably will” vote to codify the right to same-sex marriage into federal law, while Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio is a co-sponsor of the Senate’s version of the bill, according to his office. Mitch McConnell, the leader of the Senate’s minority, chose not to express an opinion on the proposal.
Regardless of your political background, I believe that many Americans feel that this issue has been settled when you look at the House vote and the evolving opinion about it across the nation, Portman told reporters, adding that the law is a “important statement.”
Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, told reporters on Monday that he thought the two legislation that are expected to be considered by the House this week would receive the 60 votes required to end a filibuster.
He stated on Monday: “Notice how silent the Republicans were when the same-sex marriage controversy eventually surfaced under the Obama administration.”
“They understand. On the wrong side of history, they are.”
Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat from Wisconsin, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer have discussed how to approach Republicans about their support in bringing the marriage equality measure to the floor of the Senate.
The White House, which lobbied the House to pass both legislation, is in favor of them both.
The Office of Management and Budget stated that the marriage equality measure will grant “important legal protections, dignity, and full participation in our society” to those who choose to marry.
Every married couple in the United States deserves the peace of mind that comes from knowing that their marriage will be upheld and protected.
No one should be subjected to prejudice because of who they are or whom they love.
According to the Budget Office, the Right to Contraception Act “To guarantee that everyone has the power to make independent decisions about their own health, lives, and families, access to contraception is crucial.
There has never been a more crucial time to defend and increase access to family planning services following the overturning of Roe, which was founded on the basic right to privacy in matters of health, bodily autonomy, and family.”
Democrats’ response to Thomas’ concurring opinion in the Supreme Court decision overturning the constitutional right to an abortion established by Roe v. Wade is the House action.
The 1965 decision in Griswold v. Connecticut, which stated married couples have the right to use contraception without government interference, the 2003 decision in Lawrence v. Texas, which established the right to same-sex intimacy, and Obergefell, the 2015 decision recognizing the right to same-sex relationships were all cited by Thomas in his opinion, which no other justice joined.
“In the future, we should reconsider all of this court’s substantive due process precedents, including Griswold, Lawrence and Obergefell,” Thomas wrote.
But the court’s majority opinion in the abortion dispute, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, made clear that rights regarding contraception and same-sex relationships were not under threat from the Supreme Court.
“The court emphasizes that this decision concerns the constitutional right to abortion and no other right,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote.
“Nothing in this opinion should be understood to cast doubt on precedents that do not concern abortion.”
However, Democratic Representatives David Cicilline of Rhode Island and Kathy Manning of North Carolina, who are the authors of the birth control access and marriage equality bills, respectively, have cautioned that the rights are under attack as a result of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe.
“Let me be clear: We are working to protect women’s right to control their lives.
Our opponents are working to take women’s rights away,” Manning told reporters Tuesday.
“I look forward to passing this bill to protect women’s rights across this country.”