MPR’s Michael Khoo reports that the Minnesota Senate upended an attempt to force a vote on a constitutional ban on same-sex marriages. The legislation would allow voters to decide whether to amend the state constitution to define marriage as between a man and a woman.
Supporters of the ban attempted to get around the normal committee process and bring the amendment directly to the Senate floor for an up-or-down vote. The failed tactic came as thousands of gays, lesbians, and their supporters rallied on the Capitol grounds in opposition to the gay marriage ban.
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MICHAEL KHOO: Last week, the House voted on bipartisan lines to put the proposed same-sex marriage ban on the 2006 ballot. That leaves the Senate as the final battleground for those seeking a voter-approved constitutional amendment. Republican Michele Bachmann of Stillwater has been the Senate's most vocal advocate for putting the issue to voters.
Bachmann, who is an announced candidate for the sixth district congressional seat, says the DFL leadership has blocked her plan from moving forward, but her attempt to speed the process by bringing her bill directly to the Senate floor was defeated on a vote of 36 to 30. Bachmann says she's likely to try the same maneuver again.
MICHELE BACHMANN: It's not a political issue. It's a moral issue. It's a cultural issue. And it's also an issue of governance. Essentially, it comes down to this-- will the people of Minnesota be able to decide the rules that they live under, or will activist courts now decide the rules that we live under?
MICHAEL KHOO: Minnesota law already bans same-sex marriages, but courts in other states have struck down similar laws, leaving some to argue that only a constitutional amendment can truly limit marriage to one man and one woman. The proposed amendment also outlaws, quote, "legal equivalence to marriage," which gay rights advocates interpret as an attack on possible civil unions or domestic partner benefits.
Thousands gathered on the Capitol grounds to speak against the measure. Ann DeGroot is the executive director of OutFront Minnesota. She told the crowd that despite their winning one round in the Senate vote, the issue wouldn't disappear.
ANN DEGROOT: So we all have to keep together and keep working on this. Talk to our legislators, our friends, our family members, and everybody. Let them know what this would mean to you and your life.
MICHAEL KHOO: John Martinson of Shoreview says both of his daughters are lesbians, and he says he's traveled to the Capitol to persuade lawmakers that they deserve the same rights and privileges given to heterosexual couples. Martinson says gay and lesbian relationships pose no threat to his and his wife's marriage
JOHN MARTINSON: Not at all. It's enhanced by my daughters. It's enhanced by being here. It's enhanced by seeing couples.
MICHAEL KHOO: Martinson says his state representative, DFLer Bev Skalze, surprised him last week when, during the House debate, she voted for putting the same-sex marriage ban on the ballot next year. Martinson says he worked on Skalze's campaign last fall and felt disappointed and betrayed. He says the amendment itself has overtones of past civil rights debates.
JOHN MARTINSON: Because it's so unjust and so lacks any kind of understanding of what people are all about and what humans are all about in terms of even what marriage is all about. It shows a lot of hatred.
MICHAEL KHOO: Martinson and his allies won't necessarily have the last word on the matter. Later this month, supporters of the First Amendment are planning a demonstration of their own, billed as the Stand Together for Marriage rally.
Chuck Darrell represents the group Minnesota for Marriage. He says Democratic leaders in the Senate are using procedural tricks to bottle up the gay marriage amendment. Darrell says that's despite public opinion polls showing widespread support for limiting marriage to a man and a woman.
CHUCK DARRELL: We're simply asking that they represent the will of their constituents and support the amendment and stop providing cover for the other senators.
MICHAEL KHOO: Minnesota for Marriage has begun a series of radio ads targeting 10 DFL senators, asking constituents to contact them and voice their support for the same-sex marriage ban. At the Capitol, I'm Michael Khoo, Minnesota Public Radio.