As one Republican lawmaker in Michigan hashed out his proposal to condemn same-sex marriage during a news conference Tuesday, Michigan’s first openly gay state senator stared him down – and then took the mic.
Rep. Josh Schriver (R-Oxford) had announced the day before on X that he planned to introduce a resolution urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its 2015 decision legalizing same-sex marriage, alongside 12 GOP cosponsors. But by Tuesday afternoon, Schriver said that number had dwindled to six backers, and Michigan’s Speaker of the House – a fellow Republican – said the resolution would not be making it out of committee, legislative speak for “dead on arrival.”
When Schriver refused to take questions at his own news conference detailing the resolution in Lansing, Jeremy Moss – Michigan’s first openly gay state senator – stepped up to speak to journalists instead. The resolution is “buffoonish” and clearly falls flat with the people of Michigan who support the Obergefell v. Hodges decision that ensured the constitutional right of same-sex couples to marry.
“I think that people respect their LGBTQ neighbors, their LGBTQ family members. These marriages have been the law of the land for 10 years,” said Moss (D-Southfield), who was elected to Michigan’s state legislature in 2014. “This is just another hateful and harmful attack against the LGBTQ community and I don’t think people in Michigan are going to stand for it.”
But Schriver was adamant at the start of his news conference that there is support in Michigan for his resolution, adding without evidence that same-sex marriage has hurt Michigan’s family structures.
“The American legal tradition based on natural law, the will of the people and constitutional originalism upholds marriage as a union between a man and a woman,” Schriver said. “Any deviation from this definition undermines the legal and moral foundation of this republic.”
The fortitude of Obergefell has been called into question in the past, notably with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas arguing in a concurring opinion in 2022 as the constitutional right to an abortion was overturned that the nation’s highest court should also review other historical rulings, including the right to same-sex marriages.
House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) said at his own news conference Tuesday that Schriver’s resolution would not be leaving the committee to come to the floor for a vote, and that the issue of same-sex marriage is not one that unites the House Republican Caucus.
“I would say a lot of Republicans disagree with Rep. Schriver on the issue, and so what we’re trying to do is focus on issues that unify our caucus and bring people together, and those are the issues that we’re moving forward and putting on our agenda,” Hall said. Those issues include improving the state’s educational system and repairing Michigan’s roads without raising taxes.
Michiganders care about having a safe place to live and access to affordable groceries and health care, not overturning marriage equality Rep. Mike McFall (D-Hazel Park) said during a news conference earlier in the day Tuesday. Joined by the bulk of the Michigan House Democratic Caucus, McFall said Democrats stand ready to address these real issues for Michigan residents, supporting working families and successful communities to build up the state.
McFall and State Rep. Jason Morgan (D-Ann Arbor), both gay men who are married, hosted the news conference which railed against Schriver’s resolution and any future efforts made to repeal rights for LGBTQ Michiganders.
Morgan said it doesn’t matter that Schriver’s resolution, which would not have the power to change law if passed, is on a road to nowhere. It marks a “ridiculous distraction” from the actual issues Michiganders face and takes away time and effort from helping Michigan families.
“Hate plays the long game, so we have to as well. This may be a resolution today, but it’s a long term effort to try and overturn our rights,” Morgan said. “So whether those rights are overturned today or tomorrow, we are not going to stop fighting to protect these rights and to protect the people behind them.”
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