The Senate pushed a major anti-bias gay rights bill passed a first, big hurdle Monday, a clear sign of Americans' greater acceptance of homosexuality nearly two decades after lawmakers narrowly rejected discrimination legislation.
By a vote of 61-30, one more than necessary, the Senate agreed to move ahead on the bill that would prohibit workplace discrimination against gay, bisexual and transgender Americans. Lawmakers could pass the bill by week's end, but its prospects in the Republican-majority House are dimmer.
The vote came as 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?”
The White House issued a statement after the procedural vote welcoming the results.
Seven Republicans joined all the members of the Democratic majority who voted for the measure. The three potential Republican presidential candidates _ Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Rand Paul_ voted against.
Opening Senate debate, Majority Leader Harry 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 called the measure another step forward in the country's progress.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin 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.
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.
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 and it's unclear whether the House will even vote on the measure.
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. (AP)
