WASHINGTON (ABP) — As the political battle over same-sex marriage heats up again in Washington, an unusual debate over gay rights is raising some eyebrows in Colorado.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) announced Feb. 10 he would schedule a Senate floor vote for this June on a proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. Frist made the comment at the Conservative Political Action Committee's Washington conference. The meeting brings together many of the most prominent social conservative activists in the Republican Party, including several who have been vocal opponents of gay rights.
“Today, the institution of marriage is under attack,” Frist reportedly said. “When America's values are under attack, we need to act…. And on June 5th — and everybody note that on your calendar — when I bring the Marriage Protection Amendment to the Senate floor, we will act.”
Gay-rights supporters cried foul, claiming it was a blatant attempt to leverage the issue to the GOP's advantage as midterm congressional elections swing into full gear. The Human Rights Campaign released a statement calling Frist's move “a political ploy” that he was using at the CPAC meeting “to appeal to a small group of extremists that strategists like [White House chief political advisor] Karl Rove count on turning out on Election Day.”
Frist last scheduled a vote on a similar amendment in the summer prior to the 2004 general election. However, it lost in both chambers — and by a bipartisan majority in the Senate. The proposed amendment has gone nowhere since.
But in Colorado, one conservative group opposed to gay marriage has announced their support for a state bill that would extend marriage-like rights to some same-sex couples.
Focus on the Family, the group founded by conservative Christian psychologist and radio personality James Dobson, has said it supports legislation that would allow pairs of people who cannot marry but who are financial interdependent — including gay couples — to register with county officials for benefits commonly associated with marriage.
The bill, sponsored by a conservative Republican state senator, would create “reciprocal beneficiaries” for such rights as inheritance rights and the right to make medical decisions on the behalf of one's partner. According to the Los Angeles Times, the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Shawn Mitchell (R), said, “I think we should be looking for constructive solutions, instead of always looking for conflict.”
Focus on the Family announced support for the bill in early February. Peter Brandt, the group's senior policy director, told the Times that it simply “corrects unfairness.”
Gay couples and other co-habiting couples who can't or won't get married often enter into legal contracts to attempt to create such protections for themselves. But the process is laborious and costly, usually requiring the services of an attorney.
Nonetheless, Democratic Colorado lawmakers and gay-rights groups in the state have supported a broader bill that would create domestic partnerships for gay couples. The arrangement would offer benefits and responsibilities virtually identical to those of married couples.
And Focus and other conservative groups are also supporting an amendment to the Colorado Constitution that would specifically outlaw gay marriage.
As for Frist's announcement, it earned praise from a national group formed specifically to fight gay marriage.
“Americans believe that gays and lesbians have a right to live as they choose, but they don't have a right to redefine marriage for our entire society,” said Mitch Daniels, president of the Alliance for Marriage, in a Feb. 13 press release. “Americans want our laws to send a positive message to children about marriage, family, and their future.”
The federal proposal is the Marriage Protection Amendment, S.J. Res. 1.
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