Approaching an uncertain future of increasing political polarization, society has to hold onto and cherish the little victories that come along the way. It may not seem like much, but these small political moments of positivity provide optimism for better days ahead. The recent updates regarding the Respect for Marriage Act is one of those glimmers of hope, and can perhaps be a sign of a changing tide against polarization.
The Respect for Marriage Act is a bill that if passed would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and require the federal government to recognize same-sex and interracial marriages. And while these are already protected by the 2015 Supreme Court case Obergefell v. Hodges, which found that same-sex marriage is constitutionally protected, this bill acts as a fail safe, in case the ruling is overturned sometime in the future.
This bill was passed in the Senate on November 29th, with a final vote of 61-36, after breaking a filibuster earlier in the month, and was passed in the House of Representatives, with a final vote of 268-169, with one member voting present.
While the news of a beneficial bill heading on its way to President Biden is already good, what makes it great is the surprising amount of bipartisan support in both Chambers of Congress. 39 House Republicans voted for the bill, as well as 12 Republican Senators. Many politicians and reporters are celebrating the support for the bill, with President Biden himself hailing it as a “bipartisan achievement.”
But what does this mean for the future? Was this an anomaly on the overall path of worsening political polarization? Or is this a turning point in the US government, where the pattern of polarization will begin to change for the better? Only time will tell, but if bipartisan support is present in a bill that supports same-sex marriage, a rather heated topic, which only a decade ago was regarded by members of both parties as divisive and risky terrain, things for once might be changing for the better. The bill now heads to President Biden to be signed into law.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/29/us/politics/same-sex-marriage-bill-senate.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/08/us/politics/same-sex-marriage-congress.html
15 comments:
Although I also wish to join in on your optimism Angelo, I don't consider passing a bill with 61 votes in the Senate bilateral co-operation. Rather, the Republicans who supported this bill seem to be finally reaching the threshold for how extreme their views can be without starting to lose significant voter support. The overturning of Roe V. Wade is credited as one of the main factors that prevented a "Red Wave" during the recent midterms. The percentage of Americans who support a woman's right to choose and same-sex marriages are roughly the same (around 60%). 60% is a clear majority.
Thus, I believe that the passage of this bill is a sign that a few Republican Senators are understanding that adhering to an agenda that pleases mostly extremely conservative, evangelical, white protestants won't be politically strategic going forward. Perhaps Republicans will be a little less extreme with their rhetoric going forward, but bilateral cooperation seems too optimistic.
To sum it up: I think Republicans are going to walk the tight-rope of "how conservative can we be without causing another election to result in a 'red sprinkle'" that significantly lowers their chances at re-election.
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/06/13/about-six-in-ten-americans-say-abortion-should-be-legal-in-all-or-most-cases-2/
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/09/15/more-white-americans-adopted-than-shed-evangelical-label-during-trump-presidency-especially-his-supporters/
I find it interesting how even during the age of political polarization, the Republicans in both the House and Senate voted for this bill. This seems to be a great step toward achieving more in the future that ensures the wellbeing of everyone in this country. I am unsure if this means that the pattern of polarization will change for the better b/c there still are limitations on rights such as the right to abortion. I find it odd how even if the Supreme Court rules that a certain act is protected under the constitution, there are times where it can be overturned and given to the states. For now, I think the passing of this bill is a step toward constructing a brighter future.
It is very surprising the Republicans in both chambers of Congress voted for a bill that was seemingly going to be subject to political polarization. This is definitely a step to building a better America for all.
I am glad to see this bill get passed as it is a significant step toward the betterment of the country. But I am surprised that both parties, specifically the republicans agree to this. Even though this is a big step, there are still issues such as abortion and gun control that are still present. But overall it's a really good step towards the improvement of America.
Similar to other commenters, I believe that this is an important step towards creating an equal and better country. According to Pew Research Center and News Gallup, 55% of Republicans supported gay marriage in 2021 and in 2019, 41% of Republicans/leaning Republicans feel that same-sex marriage being legalized in our country is a good thing. Although these percentages aren't as high as I'd like them to be, it does seem as if Americans have become more accepting of the LGBTQ+ community over time regardless of the political party they identify with.
https://news.gallup.com/poll/350486/record-high-support-same-sex-marriage.aspx
https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2019/12/17/5-gender-family-and-marriage-same-sex-marriage-and-religion/
It is surprising to see that both chambers of Congress passed the same-sex marriage bill during a time when the political polarization trend is growing at its liveliest speed. Since 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriage ought to be legal in all 50 states. This law balances between majority opinion that recognizes gay marriage and minority opinion that disallows same-sex marriage as it is opposed to people's religious beliefs or personal ideologies. The U.S. is welcoming a newer era with at least seen from this case, a sense of consensus on some matters.
While many people find it surprising this bill was passed, with further insight, I don't think it was that surprising. While bi-partisan support does not come around often, when it does it's usually over a topic overwhelmingly agreed on. There is no longer a stigma around gay marriage a few decades ago, with the only people who oppose it being extremely religious. The culture in America is always shifting and at this moment, same-sex marriage doesn't bother a majority of people, as other comments in this thread support this. Of course, to agree with Ben, there are still many senators in more rural parts of the country that oppose same-sex marriage because of "tradition" reflecting the holdout of people who are opposed. In this period of political polarization, I think it is great that a Bill was passed, even if it wasn't as controversial.
An interesting thing I learned while looking into this bill is that Mitch McConnell, who ultimately voted against it, stayed relatively quiet as it traveled through Congress. As a senior, influential Senator, he gave no indication of his intended vote up until he eventually voted against it. This is a) slightly ironic, as McConnell is married to an Asian American woman and the bill codifies the right to interracial marriage in addition to same-sex marriage, and b) out of the ordinary. I think that part of the bill's ability to garner bipartisan support, at least in the Senate, was due to his silence on the topic. I think that advocating strongly against it would have made him seem silly, given his personal life, and he chose to sidestep it. Additionally, Senator Susan Collins of Maine was outspoken about her support of the bill, despite her party affiliation. I think that the House's ability to pass this bill is unsurprising, but the Senate's narrow pass of it is likely due to a lack of loud, disruptive opposition. While Clarence Thomas did allude to potentially overturning Obergefell v. Hodges in the draft opinion about overturning Roe, I don't think blocking this specific bill was a part of any larger plan to do so in the coming years, which is why it was able to pass with a large amount of support.
I find it interesting not that Republicans voted for this bill but that so many didn't. I think that living in a liberal area, I often forget that people are so openly against gay marriage. Of course, I know that there is a lot of prejudice but I often think that people feel pressured to hide that prejudice for fear of retribution. I am not surprised that Republicans are against gay marriage and voted against it but I just forgot that people still openly show their prejudice. Additionally, I think it is a great thing to pass this bill. With the repeal of Roe v. Wade and the logic used in that case, it is possible that if given the opportunity, the Supreme Court could overturn gay marriage as well. This fail-safe is beyond important to pass now so that even if the decision is overturned (soon or in the future), gay marriage is protected even if the Congress at the time of the overturn isn't fully in favor of protecting marriage.
Leia brings up an interesting point on how many republican congressman are openly against gay marriage, and proudly reciprocate their values in their voting decisions. The strong polarization in congress is still present, and even though this may be seen as a positive step towards a more compromising congress, there is still much work to be done. The law also connects to the topic of Roe V Wade, in which the courts decision creates a precedent for the nation, yet in the case that it gets overturned, that protection is quickly lost.
I am so glad that this bill has past but I am not incredibly surprised that it did. I mean at this point its still mind boggling to me that people are voting no on this. I think that younger voters have shown that these types of bills are important to this next generation. I feel like with the liberal trajectory of this younger voter electorate it seems as if some of these republicans are shooting themselves in the foot. ofcours these issues are present and a large portion of the Contry indenifys with the conservatives that voted no on this but it seems like as far as the future goes I believe that this bill represents a large portion of the newer electorate's views.
I agree with Leia that because we live in California we don't see much open hate against gay marriage and I agree that it is weird a bill that should make sense to be unanimous still had 36 votes against it. It kind of shows that either there is some deep hatred that these republicans have or that they are so intice to follow the ideologies of those who support and lead their group that they blindly vote against bills that are created by democrats. I do believe that this is majorly important with stuff like events being attacked by right-wing extremists explained in this PBS article.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/drag-queen-events-are-increasingly-targeted-by-right-wing-demonstrators
I feel like it's extremely important that they were able to pass this same-sex marriage act because it is a turning point with same-sex marriage becoming something that is respected by society. Many people, such as conservatives, and with the Roe v. Wade case believe that it's not right for people of the same sex to get married because it doesn't align with their traditionalist ideals, but I believe it's time for them to accept that society nowadays isn't about life back then where only men and women married and the women were in charge of the household while men worked and made money. No! The democracy in America is meant for people to have equal opportunities and freedom to choose what they want, such as who they marry. I feel like the bipartisan support is also very interesting with they heavy divide in opinion between pro-life and pro-choice, but I guess this issue is different than abortion and therefore show different beliefs in opinion from both sides, which I think is very interesting.
The political polarization has worsened over the years and personally, I think it will persist. While there are moments such as the passage of this bill that might prove otherwise, I think it is still important to recognize that a good amount of votes from the republicans come from a place of obligation rather than support. I think in this case and in others, obligation is not a bad thing as ultimately the bill was passed, however, I believe we must still question the intentions of both parties. As seen with Roe v. Wade, people's lack of consideration and respect for others truly began to show based on the decisions in some states to restrict access to safe abortions. I think the passing of this fail-safe recognizes how important it is to have this bill and it works to ensure that the rights of the people are protected from the opinions of others. While I think the passage of this bill in both chambers of Congress represented a moment of unity, I personally don’t think it represents any substantial progress being made regarding political polarization.
Although I think it's amazing to hear that a majority of Republicans are now more on board with same-sex marriage than they were a few decades ago, I still think it is shocking to see that there is still plenty that are against it. In my opinion, data showing at least a 70-30 majority means total bi-cameral support. While still a majority, 60-40 is still shocking, given that LGBTQ+ rights appear to be a much more widely supported idea now. Regardless, this is still a positive showing that change is occurring, slowly yet surely.
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