Democrats aim to box in GOP on same-sex marriage, contraception
by Emily Brooks - 07/26/22 7:19 AM ET
Recent House votes to enshrine federal protections for same-sex marriage and contraception access signal a Democratic strategy to box in Republicans on social issues, which they hope could help knock GOP candidates down a few pegs in a handful of key races.
Republicans are largely brushing off the attacks, turning their attention to economic issues that dominate voter concerns in polls. They argue that Democrats are playing political games in bringing up the bills, that same-sex marriage and contraception access are not at risk, and that the contraception bill posed issues with its wide definition and religious liberty ramifications.
But Democrats say they will keep the focus on GOP votes against the bills through the election.
“We will continue to call out Republicans’ votes against protecting everything from marriage equality, to abortion, to contraception — all while they plot a nationwide abortion ban. By November, voters will know that Democrats are fighting to protect the freedoms that Republicans are hellbent on ripping away,” Democratic National Campaign Committee spokesperson Helen Kalla said in a statement.
Last week, 157 House Republicans voted against a bill to codify federal protections for same-sex and interracial marriage, as well as repeal the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act that defined marriage for federal purposes as being between one man and one woman. On a bill to codify federal protections for contraception access, 195 House Republicans voted “no.”
The bills were a direct response to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurring opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the case that overturned the abortion rights case Roe v. Wade, which suggested the court “reconsider” its substantive due process precedents in several cases, including those that legalized same-sex marriage and the right for married couples to buy and use contraception.
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https://thehill.com/homenews/3573853-democrats-aim-to-box-in-gop-on-same-sex-marriage-contraception/
