Bill Protecting Marriage Equality , Passes With Bipartisan Support , in the US House.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the bill by a vote of 267-157 on July 19.
47 Republicans supported the measure which would protect marriage rights regardless of sexuality or race.
Passage of the bill follows the contentious Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, .
which ended federal protections of reproductive rights.
This is significant because the same legal framework upon which Roe was built was also used in the Supreme Court's ruling that established gay marriage rights.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas suggested in his concurring opinion to the ruling that overturned Roe, .
that the Court should
reconsider other rulings
built upon the same
legal framework.
Thomas specifically
mentioned the ruling
that established
marriage equity, as
well as other rulings.
Congressional Republicans, including
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) agreed with Thomas, .
referring to the Court's establishment of
marriage equity as "clearly wrong.".
The bill that passed on July 19 was sponsored by Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D-NY).
In a statement before its passage, Nadler cited the precariousness of rights that seemed on solid footing
before the Supreme Court overturned Roe.
The rights and freedoms that we have come to cherish will vanish into a cloud of radical ideology and dubious legal reasoning, Jerrold Nadler, House Judiciary Committee Chairman, via Reuters.
The House bill would require states that may end up restricting gay marriage to recognize such marriages conducted in other states