It’s been about a week since the House passed the Respect for Marriage Act, as part of an effort to codify legal same-sex marriage nationwide and protect marriage equality from Republican-appointed Supreme Court justices. The legislation is now pending in the Senate, where Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin — the nation’s first openly LGBTQ senator — is coordinating with Republicans to determine if there are at least 10 GOP members willing to help advance the bill.
To the extent that public opinion matters, it’s clearly on Democrats’ side: The latest national Politico/Morning Consult poll found that 58 percent of Americans support passing a federal bill to codify marriage equality, as opposed to 31 percent who oppose the measure.
In theory, survey results like these might put Republicans on the defensive. In practice, much of the party doesn’t seem to care. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who’s running for re-election in an ostensibly competitive state, has already denounced the legislation, which was consistent with his longstanding support for discriminating against same-sex couples, including vows to fight against marriage equality, even after it became legal nationwide. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has also said the Supreme Court's marriage equality ruling was "clearly wrong."
Yesterday, GOP Sen. Steve Daines of Montana announced his rejection of the bill, too.
U.S. Senator Daines today released the following statement on the Democrat’s [sic] proposed bill to codify same-sex marriage. “I believe marriage is between a man and a woman. I’m opposed to this bill and believe it’s another attempt by Speaker Pelosi and the Democrats to distract the American people from the inflation crisis, energy crisis and the southern border crisis they’ve created,” Daines said.
For the most part, Republicans on Capitol Hill have pushed related talking points of late, insisting that the Respect for Marriage Act is an unnecessary distraction since marriage equality isn’t under a serious threat, at least not right now.
As a political matter, I can at least understand the tactical appeal of such a pitch. It’s wrong, and it’s a cop out, but for a party that’s clearly on the wrong side of public opinion, existing legal precedent, and basic human decency, there’s no great mystery as to why the GOP has settled on this line.
But note how the Montana Republican went further: “I believe marriage is between a man and a woman.” In other words, for Daines, the Respect for Marriage Act isn’t just an unnecessary distraction, it’s also misguided: The senator apparently prefers a system in which same-sex couples do not have the right to get legally married.
Whether Daines intended to do this or not, his brief, 44-word quote helped bolster the point Respect for Marriage Act proponents are trying to make: For many Republicans and their allies, the fight over marriage equality isn’t over. They still believe that a discriminatory system is superior to the status quo. If folks like Daines had their way, the law would be rolled back to before the Supreme Court’s landmark Obergefell v. Hodges ruling.
Or put another way, some Republicans are simultaneously arguing that they’re opposed to marriage equality and they don’t understand why Democrats are so eager to protect marriage equality.
The party that’s telling Americans that the status quo isn’t in danger is the same party that wants to put the status quo in danger.
That said, not every Senate Republican agrees. Last week, three GOP senators — Ohio’s Rob Portman, Maine’s Susan Collins, and North Carolina’s Thom Tillis — said they’re prepared to support the Respect for Marriage Act. Wisconsin’s Ron Johnson, oddly enough, suggested he’s likely to vote for it, too.
Will six more Senate Republicans join them and help send the legislation to the White House? Watch this space.
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