WASHINGTON, July 14, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The Federal Marriage Amendment, a proposal to enshrine the traditional definition of marriage within the US Constitution, was defeated 50 to 48 in a procedural vote Wednesday. Supporters of the amendment failed to garner the minimum number of votes necessary to overcome procedural opposition by Senate Democrats. In response to the vote, Family Research Council (FRC) President Tony Perkins said: “The Senate’s vote today has left the future of marriage in the hands of unelected judges, at least for the time being.” Perkins emphasized that, despite the loss, “We now know which Senators are for traditional marriage and which ones are not, and by November, so will voters in every state.”“One thing is certain: the effort to protect marriage has unprecedented support,” Perkins continued. “Nine states are poised to have state constitutional amendments on their ballots this fall on marriage, and poll after poll shows that between 60 and 70 percent of Americans want marriage to remain one man, one woman. Americans realize that the protection of marriage is vital to the future of the family, the welfare of children and the security of our nation. This fight has just begun.”“This is the first stage of a lengthy legislative battle that will not go away,” said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice. “The cloture vote was an important barometer in determining where members of the Senate stand on this critical issue. An overwhelming majority of Americans want marriage to remain an institution between one man and one woman.”
The ACLJ has been gathering signatures on its Petition to Preserve Marriage in support of a federal marriage amendment and has received nearly 475,000 names to date. The petition drive will continue as the ACLJ keeps leadership in both the Senate and House informed as the total continues to grow.
See the LifeSiteNews Special Report listing how each Senator voted today https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/jul/040714a.html See also the family Research Council’s Roll Call https://capwiz.com/frc/issues/votes/?votenum=155&chamber=S&congress=1082 See also Focus on the Family: “How Did Your Senators Vote on the FMA?” https://www.family.org/cforum/extras/a0032482.cfm See prior LifeSiteNews.com coverage of the Senate debate: Federal Marriage Amendment Debate Stalls in Senate https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/jul/04071306.html Federal Marriage Amendment Debate Hits U.S. Senate https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/jul/04070903.html tv