An Iowa House panel will begin hearings
Monday on a bill that would repeal gay marriage in the state.
The Iowa Marriage Amendment (IMA) seeks
to put a question on the 2013 ballot that would define marriage in
the Iowa constitution as a heterosexual union – and thereby reverse
the 2009 Iowa Supreme Court ruling that brought gay marriage to the
Midwest.
The measure is supported by 56 out of
60 Republicans in the House and supporters claim all 60 GOP members
will likely vote for the measure, which has little – if any –
support among Democrats.
The state's most vociferous opponent of
gay marriage, The Family Leader, which is headed by former GOP
gubernatorial candidate Bob Vander Plaats, has announced it will hold
a prayer meeting in support of the bill in Room 305 from 12 to 1PM.
“Several of us plan to bring a token
of Christian love (like a small bag of cookies or other treats) to
share with homosexual activists who we'll be encountering Monday,”
the group wrote in a newsletter to supporters. “It's time we
dispel lies about Christians, by tangibly showing love to people who
struggle with homosexuality.”
A similar version of the resolution
faces a much steeper incline in the Democrat-controlled Senate, where
Majority Leader Michael Gronstal has vowed to block the measure from
reaching the floor.
Republicans increased their numbers in
the Legislature and took over the Governor's Mansion on November 2.
Voters
also ousted three out of the seven Iowa Supreme Court justices who
unanimously legalized gay marriage.