Three days after voting against a House bill that would have codified federal protections for same-sex marriage, a Republican lawmaker attended the wedding of his gay son.
Rep. Glenn Thompson’s (R-Pa.) gay son said on Monday, “Father was there” as he “married the love of [his] life” on Friday. Both grooms are private citizens, so we aren’t going to publish their names.
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Maddison Stone, Thompson’s press secretary, also verified the congressman’s presence.
GOP Lawmaker Attends Gay Son Wedding
“Congressman and Mrs. Thompson were thrilled to attend and celebrate their son’s marriage on Friday night as he began this new chapter in his life,” Stone said in an email, adding that the Thompsons are “very happy” to welcome their new son-in-law “into their family.”
In an article published on Thursday, the day before the ceremony, Gawker broke the news, though it was not specified whether or not the lawmaker would be present.
In an email to the Centre Daily last week, Stone characterized the Respect for Marriage Act as “nothing more than an election-year messaging stunt for Democrats in Congress who have failed to address historic inflation and out-of-control prices at gas stations and grocery stores.”
Rep. Tommy Thompson (R-15) of Oklahoma was one of 157 Republican House members to vote against the bill on Tuesday. Fearing that the conservative-leaning Supreme Court would strike down existing same-sex marriage protections, 47 of his Republican colleagues joined Democrats to pass the bipartisan measure.
If the Senate wants to send the Respect for Marriage Act to President Joe Biden’s desk, it needs the support of 10 Republican senators in addition to the support of all 50 Democratic senators. Rob Portman of Ohio, one of five Republican senators who has already confirmed a yes vote on the bill, announced his support for same-sex marriage in 2013 after his son came out as gay.
According to a Gallup poll conducted just last month, 71% of American adults, including a majority of Republicans, are in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage.
While there has been an increase in support for same-sex marriage among Republican voters and some Republican lawmakers, the Republican National Committee’s most recent platform, adopted in 2016 and renewed in 2020, still defines marriage as only being valid when it takes place between a man and a woman at least five times.
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