2 Senators, Republican Susan Collins and Democrat Tammy Baldwin, Pen Op-Ed to Support Marriage Equality
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Two U.S. senators, Republican Susan Collins of Maine and Democrat Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, teamed up to write an op-ed in support of the Respect for Marriage Act (RFMA) for The Washington Post.
"Millions of American families have come to rely on the promise of marriage equality and the freedoms, rights and responsibilities that come with making the commitment of marrying the one you love," the pair wrote in the essay published Tuesday.
Under the headline "The Senate Must Stand Together on Marriage Equality," Collins and Baldwin describe the legislation, which passed in the U.S. House of Representatives in July in a bipartisan 267-157 vote, as "another step forward in the United States to prevent discrimination, promote equality and protect the rights of all Americans."
The RMFA was first introduced in 2009 and, though it passed the House and was moved to the Senate floor in 2011, the Senate vote never occurred. After the landmark Supreme Court case Obergefell v. Hodges legalized same-sex marriage nationwide on June 26, 2015, there seemed to be no reason to continue pushing for it.
But in the years since, as local and state laws targeting the LGBTQ+ community spread and a Supreme Court justice hinted at reconsidering the Obergefell precedent, the codification of rights at a federal level has brought RFMA back to the legislative forefront.
"Millions of American families have come to rely on the promise of marriage equality and the freedoms, rights and responsibilities that come with making the commitment of marrying the one you love," the senators wrote for the Post.
Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Supporters of same-sex marriage await the groundbreaking Supreme Court ruling
When the RFMA was reintroduced earlier this summer, lawmakers added a small revision to not only codify the right to marriage for people regardless of sex, but also regardless of race, ethnicity or national origin, reaffirming the 1967 Supreme Court ruling in Loving v. Virginia, which legalized interracial marriage.
"Individuals in same-sex and interracial marriages need, and should have, the confidence that their marriages are legal," Collins and Baldwin wrote. "These loving couples should be guaranteed the same rights and freedoms of every other marriage."
The senators also make the case for the RFMA by showing how public opinion has changed when it comes to marriage equality.
"Over the past 30 years, Americans have grown more supportive of marriage equality. In 1996, less than one-third of Americans — a mere 27 percent — supported same-sex marriages," they noted. "A quarter-century later, in 2022, more than 70 percent of Americans support marriage equality, including a majority of Democrats, Republicans and independents."
However, some of Collins' Republican colleagues are among those who don't.
Sens. Collins and Baldwin pointed out that the RFMA they support is "a simple, straightforward measure" that's only four pages long and shorter than their op-ed.
"The Respect for Marriage Act would simply require the federal government to recognize a marriage if the marriage was valid in the state where it was performed," they said. "It would guarantee legal marriages are given full faith and credit, regardless of the couple's sex, race, ethnicity or national origin."
AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin Wives celebrate the legalization of same-sex marriage outside SCOTUS in 2015
The senators also addressed concerns of those who might argue that the RFMA would limit religious freedom or grant rights other kinds of relationships.
"The Respect for Marriage Act has been misunderstood, leading to false assertions and mischaracterizations of its scope," they added. "This legislation would not, in fact, legalize or recognize polygamous relationships or marriages."
"Moreover, religious liberty is a founding tenet of our republic, and the Respect for Marriage Act honors that principle. Our bipartisan legislation leaves intact religious liberties and protections afforded to individuals and organizations under federal law," the senators continued.
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Collins and Baldwin, who are cosponsors of the bill, also explained their reasoning for joining forces in favor of marriage equality despite being from opposing parties.
"We have worked across party lines to bring the Senate together and build support for the Respect for Marriage Act," they wrote, "because we should be able to agree that same-sex and interracial couples, regardless of where they live, both need and deserve the assurance that their marriage will be recognized by the federal government and that they will continue to enjoy freedoms, rights and responsibilities that come with all other marriages."
