Senate Republicans are keeping their distance from a House-passed same-sex marriage bill, even though polls show a majority of Republicans support it and the measure overwhelmingly passed the lower chamber with 47 House GOP votes .
So far, only three Senate Republicans have said they would support the measure, and a fourth, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), says she supports marriage equality in general but needs to take a closer look at the legislation.
“I have long publicly stated my support for marriage equality,” she said, explaining that she had not had a chance to review the bill up close.
The three Republicans who say they will support the measure are the bill’s sponsors, Sens. Susan Collins (Maine) and Rob Portman (Ohio), and Sen. Tom Tillis (N.C.), who told reporters he “probably will” vote for him.
There is also a group of eight to 10 Republicans who are potential yes.
But two GOP senators initially thought to be possible supporters of the legislation, Sens. John Cornyn (Texas) and Lindsey Graham (S.C.), said Wednesday they would not vote for it.
Cornyn dismissed the legislation as a political ploy by Democrats trying to deflect attention from inflation, and Graham said he wanted to uphold the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
Cornyn noted that the Supreme Court ruled in 2015 in Obergefell v. Hodges that the 14th Amendment protects the right of same-sex couples to marry, and argued that this is unlikely to change.
“This is a fabricated controversy in pursuit of a political narrative that somehow the Supreme Court’s decision is under threat. I don’t believe it is, and it’s an attempt to stoke the fire of political activists and scare them with a narrative that I think is a false narrative,” Cornyn said.
Graham says he wants to uphold the Defense of Marriage Act, which allows individual states not to recognize marriages performed in other states, until it is declared unconstitutional in Obergefell.
“I will support the Defense of Marriage Act,” he said when asked about the House-passed bill.
A key centrist, Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who has sided with Democrats on several high-profile votes this Congress, said the House-passed bill was unnecessary because same-sex marriage is already recognized by the law of the land.
“We all know what the law is and I don’t see the law changing, so it’s not something I’m considering at this stage,” he said, adding he would focus on the proposal “if it comes our way.” ”
Democrats point to Justice Clarence Thomas’ concurring opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, which struck down abortion rights, to argue that the legislation is necessary. Thomas argued that the court “needs to reconsider” its rulings protecting same-sex marriage and contraception rights.
Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said he wanted to bring the bill to the House after the 267-157 vote in the lower chamber signaled the legislation had a chance to pass and would almost certainly make Senate Republicans is uncomfortable. The bill also includes protections for interracial marriage.
Democratic strategists say Republicans would hurt themselves politically, especially with moderate and independent voters, if they vote against or block the legislation.
Gallup’s annual Values and Beliefs Survey, released last month, found that 71 percent of Americans believe same-sex marriages should be recognized by law.
“The vast majority of the American people support same-sex marriage and it would be against the grain of the people” if Senate Republicans failed the legislation, said Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairman Gary Peters (D-Mich.). “This is an ongoing effort by Republicans to take away people’s rights.”
Supporters of the legislation hope Romney can be persuaded to vote for it after all four Republican members of Utah’s delegation did so on Tuesday.
Other Senate Republicans said they were open to the legislation or declined to take a position.
“I’m open to it,” said Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), vice chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, which wants to review the details.
“I’m not sure how he will be instructed. I don’t know what the text will say, but I will remain open to it,” she said.
Retiring Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) is seen as another potential yes vote.
“I’ll look into it,” he said.
Other Republicans considered possible supporters include Sens. Bill Cassidy (LA), Pat Toomey (Pennsylvania), Richard Burr (NC), Shelley Moore Capito (WV) and Mike Rounds (SD).
Portman said views on gay marriage are changing within the Senate Republican Conference as well as among voters across the country.
“You see the changing sentiment on this issue across the country. I think it’s a problem that many Americans, regardless of political affiliation, see as solved,” he said.
“My personal views on the matter have not changed since a few years ago when I said that people should be able to marry whoever they want,” he said. “I think his time has come.”
Portman said he did not conduct a whip count, but pointed out that the Senate passed legislation in 2013 by 64 votes to protect LGBT employees from discrimination in the workplace.
Portman spoke in defense of a bill to recognize same-sex marriage at the federal level during a Senate Republican Caucus luncheon Wednesday, where Republican senators debated the issue.
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Participants in the meeting said the senators expressed opposing views but characterized the debate as polite.
Senate Republican Whip John Thune (SD), who has not yet taken a position on the bill, said it “could” attract 10 Republican votes, enough to overcome a filibuster.
“I don’t think I need to do that. The court made it very clear that the precedent they were looking at in Dobbs was without prejudice to other precedents,” he said.
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