Two GOP Senators Announce Support for Religious Liberty Amendment to Same Sex Marriage Bill
Two of the 12 Republican Senators who voted to advance the so-called “Respect for Marriage Act” (RFMA) announced that they would support Sen. Mike Lee’s (R-UT) religious liberty amendment, which was created to keep the federal government from targeting or retaliating against any person or group for adhering to sincerely held religious beliefs and moral convictions about marriage.
Sens. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), who both voted on November 16 to advance to same-sex marriage bill, told the Daily Signal over the weekend that they would support Lee’s amendment. Lummis’ spokeswoman Stacey Daniels told the publication on Saturday that the senator will support the Lee amendment if it is brought to the floor. While she did not directly answer whether she would insist on the amendment’s adoption as a condition for supporting cloture, Lummis’ team said she is “hopeful her colleagues will join her in supporting” the measure.
Likewise, Sullivan spokesman Mike Reynard told the publication on Friday that the senator supports both an amendment from Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) and Lee, adding that Sullivan “has been working hard to ensure that these amendments get votes on the Senate floor.”
We still have time to protect religious liberty. We’re asking our colleagues to support my amendment. pic.twitter.com/y7JXkxNXTZ
— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) November 19, 2022
Support from Sullivan and Lummis comes after Lee sent a letter last week to the 12 GOP senators who voted for the Respect for Marriage Act, asking them to reject the RFMA unless his amendment is added.
“No American should face legal harassment or retaliation from the federal government for holding sincerely held religious beliefs or moral convictions,” he wrote in the letter.
“My amendment would ensure that federal bureaucrats do not take discriminatory actions against individuals, organizations, nonprofits, and other entities based on their sincerely held religious beliefs or moral convictions about marriage by prohibiting the denial or revocation of tax exempt status, licenses, contracts, benefits, etc.,” the letter continues. “It would affirm that individuals still have the right to act according to their faith and deepest convictions even outside of their church or home.”
62-37: Senate advanced marriage equality legislation to protect same-sex and interracial marriage under federal law. 12 Republicans voted Yes: Blunt, Burr, Capito, Collins, Ernst, Lummis, Murkowski, Portman, Romney, Sullivan, Tillis and Young. 60 votes were needed. pic.twitter.com/nux07RpBZp
— Craig Caplan (@CraigCaplan) November 16, 2022
The RFMA was introduced following the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, due to Democrats’ unfounded concerns that the Supreme Court could use the Dobbs decision to overrule the Court’s Obergefell gay marriage decision. The measure passed the House in July with the help of 47 Republicans, but Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) agreed to postpone a vote until after the midterms.
Overall, the RFMA would repeal the Clinton-era Defense of Marriage Act and would require the federal government to recognize any marriage that was “valid in the place where entered into.” The bill would additionally require every state to recognize every same-sex marriage that “is valid in the State where the marriage was entered into.”
The bill also has a “private right of action” clause, which would allow “any person who is harmed by a violation of subsection (b)…[to] bring a civil action in the appropriate district court of the United States against the person who violated such a subsection for declaratory and injunctive relief.” Likewise, attorneys general would be able to bring civil action against any person who violates the law.
Many of the lawmakers who support the RFMA say the legislation would protect liberty with the potential addition of a bipartisan amendment from Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Susan Collins (R-ME), Rob Portman (R-OH), and Thom Tillis (R-NC) entitled “No Impact on Religious Liberty and Conscience.”
But religious liberty proponents say that amendment does nothing to shield Americans who have a traditional view of marriage from being targeted under the law.
Heritage Action for America Executive Director Jessica Anderson released a statement saying RFMA is an “unnecessary piece of legislation that provides for lawsuits against those who simply hold a different view on marriage.” Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said the bill “opens the door to American persecution.” Rev. Franklin Graham called the legislation’s name a “smoke screen,” similar to the Inflation Reduction Act, which did nothing to reduce inflation.
The Respect for Marriage Act is coming before the Senate again on Monday. Why should that matter to you? Because it…
Posted by Franklin Graham on Saturday, November 26, 2022
In an op-ed published to Fox News Digital on Monday, Lee vouched again for his amendment, writing that “Congress can recognize the ongoing validity of same-sex marriage without trampling on the First Amendment rights of those who believe in traditional marriage.”
“Unfortunately, the current language of the RFMA does not strike that balance. Instead, it elevates the rights of one group at the expense of another,” he continued. “The religious protections in my amendment offer the best path toward achieving the civility necessary for a pluralistic society to thrive. Therefore, I’m hopeful that my friends and colleagues can come together, united by a shared commitment to tolerance and mutual respect, to support my amendment.”
Vote Scheduled: At 5:30pm, on Monday, November 28th, the Senate will proceed to a roll call vote on the motion to invoke cloture on Baldwin-Collins substitute amendment #6487 to Cal. #449, H.R.8404, Respect for Marriage Act.
— Senate Cloakroom (@SenateCloakroom) November 18, 2022
The toothless bipartisan religious liberty amendment is scheduled for a Senate roll call vote on the motion to invoke cloture at 5:30 p.m. on Monday.
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