Republicans Must Insist Gay Marriage Bill Leave Room for Religious Freedom | Opinion
Republicans breathed a sigh of relief this past week when Democrats announced they would postpone a vote on their Respect For Marriage Act in the Senate.
The bill, which seeks to enshrine the right to gay marriage in federal law, passed easily in the House of Representatives with the votes of every Democrat and 47 Republican members.
But sponsors know they must have at least 10 Republican votes in the Senate if they are to prevent a filibuster. The only sticking point was whether sponsors would include language in the bill that would ensure the rights of those who oppose gay marriage for religious reasons.Though most Republicans have no appetite for refighting a culture war over gay rights that was lost long ago, they need to stand their ground on the question of religious freedom.Democrats are pushing the gay marriage bill because of what Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in his concurring opinion in the Dobbs v.
Jackson Supreme Court decision. The Justice expressed a willingness to uphold the actual meaning of the text of the Constitution—as opposed to the liberal belief that the Constitution can be used to validate any policy goal—that also calls into question the 2015 Obergefell decision in which the Court established a national right to gay marriage.
