Senate punts same-sex marriage vote until after midterm elections

The Senate won't vote on legislation to protect same-sex marriage until after the midterm elections, key senators said Thursday, apparently in a bid to give Rep

WASHINGTON — The Senate won't vote on legislation to protect same-sex marriage until after the midterm elections, key senators said Thursday, apparently in a bid to give Republicans political space to support the bill without offending their base.

The leader of the effort, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., has been working this month on an amendment to the bill aimed at attracting more Republican votes to overcome a filibuster. But the necessary 10 GOP votes have remained elusive.

"We're very confident that the bill will pass, but we will need a little more time," Baldwin told reporters Thursday.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said Wednesday that the amendment language they were working on would “make it very clear” that the bill wouldn’t “legalize polygamous marriages” or require churches to “perform same-sex marriages.”

People rally in support of marriage equality outside the Supreme Court during oral arguments in a case challenging the Defense of Marriage Act on March 27, 2013.Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images file"I think we're in very good shape, very good shape. And this bill is going to pass," Collins said Thursday. "I think we managed to thread the needle on the religious liberty concerns."

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/senate-punts-sex-marriage-vote-midterm-election-rcna47948

---