Friday 9 September 2022 04:28 PM Same-sex marriage bill proponents try to woo Republicans with religious freedom ... trends now

Proponents of the same-sex marriage bill that will soon be up for a vote in the Senate are working overtime to satisfy religious freedom concerns that could thwart the measure which won nearly 50 House Republicans. 

Democrats must secure 10 Republican votes to break a filibuster on the Respect for Marriage Act. Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson's reversal from a 'yes' to a 'no' this week puts them one behind and nowhere near 10 guaranteed yes votes. 

Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has promised to hold a vote on the bill 'in the coming weeks.' 

The bill had wide bipartisan support in the House, where it didn't need the vote of a single Republican to pass, but won 47 anyways - including two members of GOP leadership. 

Some Republicans are hesitant to vote for the bill due to concerns it would infringe on religious freedom; others, like Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, just think the bill is a 'stupid waste of time.' 

Same sex marriage is already legal in all 50 states - the 2013 Supreme Court ruling, Obergefell v. Hodges, found that portions of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act that prevented the federal government from recognizing same-sex unions for federal benefits was unconstitutional. Still, the law has remained in place - the Respect for Marriage Act would repeal it. 

Sens. Susan Collins, R-Me., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisc., wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post this week assuring their colleagues the bill would not step on religious freedoms and promising an amendment that would guarantee that. 

'Religious liberty is a founding tenet of our republic, and the Respect for Marriage Act honors that principle,' the bipartisan pair wrote. 'We recognize that some might need more clarity on this point, and that is why we have worked together with our Senate colleagues to

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