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| FILE - In this Oct. 29, 2013 file photo, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Senate prepared to push major gay rights legislation past a first, big hurdle Monday as Democrats and a handful of Republicans united behind a bill to prohibit workplace discrimination against gay, bisexual and transgender Americans. |
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A major gay rights bill has cleared its first hurdle in the Senate.
On
a vote of 61-30, the Senate voted to move ahead on the legislation that
would prohibit workplace
discrimination based on sexual orientation and
gender identity.
The bipartisan vote
increases the chances that the Senate will pass the bill by week's end,
but its prospects in the Republican-led House are dimmer.
Speaker John Boehner remains opposed to the bill, arguing that it will lead to frivolous lawsuits and undercut
job creation.
A vote would come 17 years after the Senate rejected a similar discrimination measure by one vote.
The Obama administration has said passage of the bill is long overdue.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
The
Senate prepared to push a major anti-bias gay rights bill past a first,
big hurdle Monday, a clear sign of Americans' greater acceptance of
homosexuality nearly two decades after lawmakers narrowly rejected
discrimination legislation.
The bill that
would prohibit workplace discrimination against gay, bisexual and
transgender Americans could win Senate passage by week's end, but its
prospects in the Republican-majority House are dimmer.
A
stark reminder of the nation's changing views, lingering resistance to
homosexuality and the political implications resonated in Maine, as
six-term Democratic Rep. Mike Michaud, who is running for governor, said
he was gay and questioned whether it still mattered to voters.
Hours
before Monday's vote, President Barack Obama issued a fresh plea for
passage of the Employment
Non-Discrimination Act, the first significant
gay rights bill since Congress lifted the ban on gays serving openly in
the military nearly three years ago.
"Americans
ought to be judged by one thing only in their workplaces: their ability
to get their jobs done," the president said in a message written for
Huffingtonpost.com. "Does it make a difference if the firefighter who
rescues you is gay - or the accountant who does your taxes or the
mechanic who fixes your car?"
All 55 members
of the Democratic majority and at least five Republicans were expected
to vote to proceed with the bill, giving Majority Leader Harry Reid,
D-Nev., the 60 votes necessary. Reid's Republican colleague in Nevada,
Dean Heller, announced his support on Monday, saying that the measure
"raises the federal standards to match what we have come to expect in
Nevada, which is that discrimination must not be tolerated under any
circumstance."
Opening Senate debate, Reid
quoted slain gay rights leader Harvey Milk, who argued that freedom and
individual rights shouldn't hinge on political deals and opinion polls.
The
law, Reid said, would ensure that "all Americans regardless of where
they live can go to work unafraid to be who they are." Sen. Tom Harkin,
D-Iowa., called the measure another step forward in the country's
progress.
The administration, in a strong statement of support, said passage of the bill was long overdue.
Sen.
Mark Kirk, R-Ill., delivered his first speech on the Senate floor since
suffering a stroke in January 2012. Seated at a desk, Kirk said it was
especially important for an Illinois Republican to speak out for the
legislation in the tradition of Everett Dirksen and Abraham Lincoln, two
leaders on civil rights.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin,
D-Wis., the first openly gay member of the Senate, praised the
Republicans and Democrats united behind the bill.
"For
those that stand up this week and answer the call for courage, I can
say with confidence your courage will be respected and remembered when
the history of this struggle is written," Baldwin said.
Current
federal law prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, race and
national origin. But it doesn't stop
an employer from firing or refusing
to hire workers because they are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.
The bill would bar employers with 15 or more workers from using a
person's sexual orientation or gender
identity as the basis for making
employment decisions, including hiring, firing, compensation or
promotion.
Possible passage of the bill would
cap a 17-year quest to secure Senate support for the anti-bias measure
that failed by one vote in 1996, the same year Congress passed and
President Bill Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage Act. That law
required the federal government to refuse to recognize same-sex
marriages.
In 1996, Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah
voted against the bill. Earlier this year, he was one of several
Republicans to back the measure in committee along with Sen. Lisa
Murkowksi of Alaska. Seventeen years ago, Murkowski's father Frank -
then the state's senator - voted against the bill.
Today
Americans have shown increasing support for same-sex marriage, now
legal in 14 states and the District of Columbia. The Supreme Court in
June affirmed gay marriage and granted federal benefits to legally
married same-sex couples.
Meanwhile, in Maine, Michaud wrote about his homosexuality.
"That
may seem like a big announcement to some people. For me, it's just a
part of who I am, as much as being a third-generation mill worker or a
lifelong Mainer. One thing I do know is that it has nothing to do with
my ability to lead the state of Maine," Michaud wrote in an op-ed
article.
The anti-discrimination bill faces strong opposition from conservative groups - Heritage Action and the Faith and Freedom Coalition said the vote will be part of their legislative scorecard on lawmakers. More to its immediate prospects, the legislation is opposed by Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and it's unclear whether the House will even vote on the measure.
Reiterating
Boehner's longstanding opposition, spokesman Michael Steel said Monday
that Boehner "believes this legislation will increase frivolous
litigation and cost American jobs, especially small business jobs."
Besides
Heller and Kirk, three other Republican senators are backing the
legislation - Susan Collins of Maine, Hatch and Murkowski - and
proponents expect a few others to support it.
Chad
Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, the largest gay and
lesbian advocacy group, contrasted Heller's backing with Boehner's
opposition.
"The speaker, of all people,
should certainly know what it's like to go to work every day afraid of
being fired," Griffin said, a reference to the unsuccessful, tea
party-backed challenge to Boehner earlier this year.
Twenty-two
states and the District of Columbia have approved laws banning
workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and 17 of
those also prohibit employers from discriminating based on gender
identity.
About 88 percent of Fortune 500
companies have adopted nondiscrimination policies that include sexual
orientation, according to the Human Rights Campaign. About 57 percent of
those companies include gender identity.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce remains neutral on the bill, a spokeswoman said Monday.
Drew
Hammill, a spokesman for House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, said it
was disappointing that Boehner may not bring the measure to a vote.
"When the Senate passes this legislation, all options will be on the
table in order to advance this critical legislation in the House,"
Hammill said.
At the White House, spokesman
Jay Carney sidestepped questions about whether Obama would consider
issuing an executive order on workplace discrimination if Congress
refused to act. Gay rights groups have criticized Obama for refusing to
take that step, which would affect employees who work for federal
contractors.
