Gay rights lobbyists plan to use their victory at the Supreme Court to push legislation that would ensure married same-sex couples are eligible for federal benefits in all 50 states. ------ That means another major lobbying battle is at hand for groups on both sides of the marriage debate. ------ Conservative and religious groups that oppose same-sex marriage said they would seek to make the issue moot by passing an amendment to the Constitution that would ban gay marriage nationwide.
“A narrow radical majority of the court has, in my opinion, substituted their personal views for the constitutional decisions of the American voters and their elected representatives,” Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) said Wednesday when announcing the amendment push. ------ Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Wednesday said he was “disappointed” in the court’s ruling and signaled the House will seek to protect the rights of states to decide whether to allow same-sex marriage.
“A robust national debate over marriage will continue in the public square, and it is my hope that states will define marriage as the union between one man and one woman,” Boehner said in a statement.