A key Republican, Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, told CNN on Wednesday that he would “probably support” the bill. And, importantly, Republican Whip John Thune said he expects the legislation to have similarly strong GOP support in the Senate as it has in the House.
“If and when (Democrats) bring a bill to the floor, we will look at it carefully,” said Thune, Republican of South Dakota, who cautioned that he had not made a decision on the bill. “As you saw, there was pretty good bipartisan support in the House yesterday, and I expect there would probably be the same that you would see in the Senate.” At this point, four Republicans, including Tillis, have indicated their support for the bill, while several have said they will vote against it. Some Republicans are undecided on how they will vote. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, has said he wants to bring the bill to the floor soon, but has not said when he would schedule a vote. He added that he was “impressed by how much bipartisan support the bill received in the House.” The Senate leaves for its August recess in two weeks, making it unlikely that it will be able to take the floor before then, especially as senators are already trying to pass a bill to boost semiconductor chip production and a separate economic package. Its adoption after August brings the debate closer to the midterm elections and will allow Democrats to highlight what they believe are key social issues important to voters. Thune, who said he respects the Supreme Court’s 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, who legalized same-sex unions, accused Democrats of forcing the issue to distract from high inflation and other economic problems that could hurt them in the midterm elections. Marriage equality advocates are pushing for quick passage of the Respect for Marriage Act, which also legalizes interracial marriage, after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in an opinion in the recent case that overturned the constitutional right to abortion that the high court may want to reconsider other decisions related to contraception and same-sex marriage. Many Republicans dismissed Thomas’ words and said they do not expect the Supreme Court to review those cases. Republican Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio, who is co-sponsoring the bill, said the vote on the issue sends an “important message” and that it’s “obvious” 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 an issue that many Americans, regardless of political affiliation, believe has been resolved.” He noted that “his personal views on this have changed,” over time. Portman publicly announced his support for same-sex marriage after his son came out a few years ago. Asked if they could get 10 Republicans to support the legislation, Portman pointed to an anti-discrimination bill the Senate was able to pass with 60 votes in recent years. “I think there is a possibility, yes.” In addition to Portman, Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine is a co-sponsor of the bill, as is Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisconsin, the first known openly gay politician elected to the US Senate. Speaking on the Senate floor, Schumer said he had spoken with Baldwin and was “talking to Republicans to see where the support is.” Many Republicans declined to state their positions on the legislation, saying they want to study the legislation first. “I’ll take a look at what’s actually drafted, and we’ll look at it at that point, but I have no comment until I see what it looks like,” said Sen. Mitt Romney, Republican of Utah.
“I’m going to hold off on announcing anything on this until we see what the majority leader wants to put on the floor,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, echoed Tuesday. Other Republicans who would not commit were Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, Sen. Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Sen. Todd Young of Indiana. Other Republican senators interviewed by CNN, including Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, said they would vote against the House-passed bill.
Rubio dismissed the effort as a “stupid waste of time” as he entered an elevator where Baldwin was standing. But GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who is running for re-election in Alaska, said she would like to pass laws in the areas Thomas raised in his opinion to ensure abortion, contraceptive use and same-sex marriage are legalized . “I have suggested to others that not only would I like to see Roe, Casey and Griswold on contraception codified, but I have also made my support for same-sex marriage clear years ago,” he said. “So I’m going to look at what the House is doing and see what that might mean here on the Senate side.” CNN’s Jessica Dean, Ali Zaslav and Morgan Rimmer contributed to this report.