[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 146 (Monday, September 12, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S4528]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                        Respect for Marriage Act

  Madam President, now, on marriage, off the Senate floor, my 
colleagues continue to have good conversations on very important 
legislation to codify marriage equality into law. Far from being a 
theoretical exercise, codifying marriage equality would have a dramatic 
long-term impact on millions of people.
  At a time when our rights are under siege, it would be a much needed 
shield for scores of Americans at risk of discrimination simply because 
of whom they love.
  For many of us in this Chamber--myself included--passing marriage 
equality would hit home in a very personal way. I want to thank my 
colleagues from both sides of the aisle--especially Senators Baldwin, 
Collins, and Sinema--for all the work they are doing to build support 
for marriage equality legislation.
  Over the past several months, I have given them the time and space 
they have requested to have these talks because I want their efforts to 
succeed. I know their work is not yet done, and I encourage them to 
keep going. I truly hope, for the sake of tens of millions of 
Americans, that there will be at least 10 Republicans who will vote 
with us to pass this very important bill.
  We cannot forget that a mere decade ago--a mere decade ago--marriage 
discrimination was the law in much of the country. While we are happy 
that America has made a lot of progress since then, we are not naive in 
thinking we can't go backward. As we saw earlier this year, it took the 
Supreme Court just a few weeks to unravel decades of vital precedent on 
women's rights, gun safety, and environmental protection. And, of 
course, Judge Thomas has opened the door for the Court to go even 
further backward when he is saying that cases like Obergefell, which 
protect marriage equality for now, should be revisited.
  So when some Republicans say: Oh, this is unnecessary; it won't 
happen, remember that is the same thing they said about Roe, and look 
at where we are today. We should protect marriage equality now, well 
before the MAGA-controlled Supreme Court steps in.
  So I encourage my colleagues to continue these conversations. The 
American people support protecting marriage rights of same-sex 
marriages by a large margin so let's get it done.