"Democrats understand that this false debate was designed as a divisive, destructive political maneuver on the part of Republican operatives," said Jo Wyrick, NSD Interim Executive Director. "Marriage is an institution that strengthens the American family, and it should be legally extended to all couples. This parlor game played today by the Republican Senate would have cut off debate on this important subject if successful. This is a conversation that we should be seriously discussing at our dinner tables and in our houses of worship, not flippantly throwing around in order for Republicans to scare up some campaign cash."

This is the second time that the United States Senate has rejected attempts to amend the United States Constitution in order to create permanent marriage discrimination. In the summer of 2004, the Senate also rejected the measure.

Republicans have aggressively campaigned for the amendment, increasing their lobbying efforts over the past week. This included a White House press event on Monday and a stream of floor statements by Republican Senators in support of the amendment throughout the week.

On Monday, President Bush held a rare press event in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House grounds in front of more than 200 anti-gay activists. There, President Bush reiterated his support for a constitutional dictate that requires states to adhere to federal regulations on family policy. On Tuesday, Republican Senator Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma joined a line of Republican Senators who stood to praise the amendment. Inhofe particularly bragged that "I’m really proud to say that in the recorded history of our family, we’ve never had a divorce or any kind of homosexual relationship."

The amendment, which failed to pass the U.S. Senate in 2004, requires that states refuse to extend marital protections or the “legal incidents thereof” to same-sex couples. Many constitutional scholars conclude that the amendment would require states like California and Connecticut to rewrite their own laws or state constitutions to comply with such a dictate. Laws passed by local communities granting measures that could be described as “legal incidents” such as hospital visitation rights and property decisions may also be threatened by the amendment.

In order to amend the United States Constitution, an amendment must be approved by two-thirds of both chambers of Congress and ratified by three-fourths of state legislatures, generally within a ten-year time frame.

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National Stonewall Democrats is the only national organization of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Democrats, with more than 90 local chapters across the nation. NSD is committed to working through the Democratic Party to advance the rights of all people regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

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