Top Republicans have joined the fight
against gay marriage in the District of Columbia, the Washington
Post reported.
Stand for Marriage DC is challenging a
District of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics ruling that
blocked opponents from pursing a ballot initiative banning gay
marriage in the District. The board concluded twice that such a
measure would violate the city's Human Rights Act that prohibits
discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Thirty-nine Republican legislators,
including two senators, James M. Inhofe of Oklahoma and Roger Wicker
of Mississippi, and 37 House members, have filed an amicus brief in
support of gay marriage opponents.
A gay marriage law signed by Mayor
Adrian M Fenty, a Democrat, is currently under review by Congress,
which has final say on all laws approved by City Council. If
Congress does not intervene, the law will go into effect in March.
“As members of the District's
ultimate legislative body, amici are concerned about the extent of
the District's delegated legislative authority, the preservation of
Congress' constitutional authority, and the interpretation of home
rule,” the brief says.
All of the GOP lawmakers are gay rights
foes. With the exception of Michigan Representative Thaddeus
McCotter, who supported a bill last year that would have outlawed
discrimination based on sexual orientation in the workplace but is
not a co-sponsor of a similar measure introduced this year, all of
the signers score zero on the Human
Rights Campaign's Congressional Scorecard, a measure of a
lawmaker's support for gay and lesbian rights in Congress.
Included are many of the party's most
vociferous opponents of gay rights, including Representatives
Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, Jason Chaffetz of Utah, Virginia Foxx
of North Carolina, Jim Jordan of Ohio and Steve King of Iowa.
Also included are House Minority Leader
John A. Boehner of Ohio and Minority Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia.