While it is likely that a majority of Republican senators will vote against the bill, lawmakers from both parties believe there will be at least 10 Republicans who would join the 50 Democrats and advance the bill to a final vote. or down.
A key Republican, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, told CNN Wednesday that he “will probably support” the bill. And, importantly, Republican Whip John Thune said he expects the legislation to have the same GOP support in the Senate as it had in the House.
“If and when (Democrats) introduce a bill, we’ll look at it closely,” said Thune, a South Dakota Republican who warned he hadn’t made any decisions about the bill. “As you can see, there was pretty good bipartisan support in the House yesterday and I hope it’s probably the same as you would see in the Senate.”
So far, four Republicans, including Tillis, have expressed support for the bill while several have said they will vote against it. Some Republicans have not committed to how they will vote.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said he wants to introduce the bill soon, but did not announce when he would schedule a vote. He added that he was “impressed by the bipartisan support he got from the bill in the House.”
The Senate is leaving for its August recess in two weeks, which makes it unlikely it will be able to get the floor before then, especially since senators are already trying to pass a bill to increase production. of semiconductor chips and a separate economical package. Resuming it after August brings the debate closer to the midterm elections and will allow Democrats to highlight those they believe are key social issues and important for voters. Thune, who said he respects the 2015 Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, who legalized same-sex unions, accused Democrats of forcing the issue to distract attention from high inflation and other economic problems that could hurt them in the midterm elections. Advocates of marital equality are pushing for a speedy passage of the Marriage Respect Act, which also legalizes interracial marriage, after Supreme Court Judge Clarence Thomas wrote in an opinion in the recent case that overturned constitutional law to abortion that the higher court might want to reconsider other decisions related to contraception and same-sex marriage. Many Republicans have rejected Thomas’ words and said they do not expect the Supreme Court to review those cases.
Republican Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio, who co-sponsors the bill, said voting on the issue sends an “important message” and that it is “obvious” that Republican views have changed over time.
“When you look at the House vote and you just look at the changing sentiment on this issue,” he said. “I think this is a problem that many Americans, regardless of their political affiliation, consider has been resolved.”
He noted that his “own personal views on this changed,” over time. Portman publicly announced his support for same-sex marriage after his son left a few years ago. When asked if they could get 10 Republicans to support the legislation, Portman referred to an anti-discrimination bill that the Senate was able to pass with 60 votes in recent years. “I think there’s a possibility, yes.” In addition to Portman, Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine is a co-sponsor of the bill, as is Wisconsin Democrat Sen. Tammy Baldwin, the first known gay politician elected to the United States Senate.
Speaking in the Senate, Schumer said she spoke with Baldwin and that “she is talking to Republicans to see where the support is.”
Many Republicans have declined to state their positions on the legislation, saying they want to study the legislation first.
“I’m going to take a look at what it’s actually being drafted, and we’ll look at that at the moment, but I don’t have any comments until I see what it looks like,” said Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney.
“I’ll be slow to announce anything on this issue until we see what the majority leader wants to put into the floor,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, echoed Tuesday.
Other Republicans who did not compromise their position included Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, Senator Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Senator Todd Young of Indiana.
Other Republican senators requested by CNN, such as Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, said they will vote against the bill passed by the House.
Rubio dismissed the effort as a “stupid waste of time” as he entered an elevator where Baldwin was standing.
But Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, running for re-election in Alaska, said she would like to pass laws in the areas Thomas raised in her view to ensure that abortion, contraceptive use and marriage among people of the same sex are legalized.
“I suggested to others that not only would I like to see Roe, Casey, and Griswold on coded contraception, but I also made clear my support for gay marriage years ago,” she said. “So I’ll look at what the House is doing and see what that can mean here in the Senate.”
Jessica Dean, Ali Zaslav and Morgan Rimmer of CNN contributed to this report.