Anti gay marriage act clears Congress

Bill to outlaw job bias against gays fails

September 10, 1996
Web posted at: 5:15 p.m. EDT

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Senate gave final congressional approval Tuesday to a bill that would deny federal recognition of same-sex marriages and give states the right to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages licensed in other states.

In a separate vote, the Senate voted 50-49 against a bill that would have banned employers from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation.

Senators voted 85-14 for the Defense of Marriage Act. The House overwhelmingly passed the bill in July, and President Clinton has said he will sign it.

The measure would not bar states from legalizing gay marriages within their borders, but states would not be obligated to recognize such marriages performed in another state. The bill was introduced by conservatives alarmed over a gay rights court case -- scheduled to go to trial Tuesday -- that could lead to Hawaii becoming the first state to legalize same-sex marriage.

Senate supporters of the bill said it was a common-sense response to the Hawaii lawsuit. "The traditional family has stood for 5,000 years," said Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas. "Are we so wise today that we are ready to reject 5,000 years of recorded history? I don't think so."

But bill opponent Sen. Carol Moseley-Braun, D-Illinois, said the bill violates a constitutional requirement that states must recognize legal contracts in other states. "This further demonstrates that the Defense of Marriage Act is really about the politics of fear and division and about inciting people in an area which is admittedly controversial," she said.

Homosexual couples would remain ineligible for spousal benefits under Social Security, Medicare or for any other federal benefit program reserved for married couples.

'Divide our constituency'

In American society, marriage "is the way in which partnerships are recognized," National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Executive Director Melinda Paras told CNN's Charles Bierbauer in a live interview from Washington. But the Defense of Marriage Act would deny that recognition to "millions of gay and lesbian Americans," she said. (27 sec/608K AIFF or WAV sound)

Paras said she was disappointed that President Clinton has promised to sign the bill, but she primarily faulted "right-wing religious extremists who are using this issue to try and divide our constituency." (26 sec/576K AIFF or WAV sound)

Job-bias bill

Gay rights groups had been optimistic about winning the battle over a separate Senate measure outlawing job discrimination against homosexuals.

The bill's sponsor, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Massachusetts, originally planned to introduce the measure bill as an amendment to the Defense of Marriage Act. But Republicans objected, believing that the anti-discrimination language was unacceptable to conservatives and would kill the marriage bill's chances for passage.

After two days of negotiations last week, the Republican leadership agreed to have the Senate vote separately on the two issues. The House has yet to act on the job-bias bill.

Correspondent Charles Bierbauer The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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