Republicans introduced bills to the House and Senate Wednesday (5-8) to define marriage as “only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife.” The measure would allow states to refuse to recognize the legality of same-sex marriages performed in other states, but it would not ban gay marriage in any state. One intention of the law is to prevent marriages performed in Hawaii — the state whose courts are expected to legalize same-sex marriage — from automatically being recognized in other states. The measure would also affect federal benefit programs. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force said conservatives were using the measure as a “wedge issue” in an election year.
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