GOP congressman announces support for marriage equality
Marriage equality gained its third Republican supporter in the House of Representatives Wednesday.
A week after a federal judge declared Pennsylvania’s ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional, Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Penn.) announced he supports same-sex couples’ right to marry.
“Years have passed, and the American public’s views on this issue have shifted. So have mine,” Dent said in a statement to The Washington Post. “Life is too short to have the force of government stand in the way of two adults whose pursuit of happiness includes marriage.”
On May 20, U.S. District Court Judge John Jones found Pennsylvania law defining marriage as between a man and a woman in violation of both the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. One day later, Republican Gov. Tom Corbett announced he would not appeal the ruling, thus making Pennsylvania the 19th state, plus D.C., to legalize same-sex marriage and bringing marriage equality to all of the Northeastern United States. Last week, Dent indicated his position was changing as he congratulated same-sex couples marrying in Pennsylvania.
In his statement Wednesday, Dent quoted from Jones’s decision.
“Fundamentally, this is about equality,” Dent stated. “As Federal District Judge John Jones – a man for whom I have great respect and have known for 20 years – wrote, ‘in the sixty years since Brown was decided, ‘separate’ has thankfully faded into history, and only ‘equal’ remains. Similarly, in future generations the label same-sex marriage will be abandoned, to be replaced simply by marriage.’”
“As a Republican, I value equality, personal freedom and a more limited role for government in our lives,” Dent continued. “I believe this philosophy should apply to the issue of marriage as well.”
Dent joins a handful of congressional Republicans who openly support same-sex marriage. In the House, Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida and Richard Hanna of New York support same-sex marriage. In the Senate, Sens. Rob Portman (Ohio), Mark Kirk (Ill.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) support same-sex marriage.
“It’s never easy for an elected leader to change a well-established position on an issue, but like millions of Americans Congressman Charlie Dent has opened his mind and heart to support marriage equality for same-sex couples,” said David Stacy, director of government affairs for the Human Rights Campaign. “We applaud Congressman Dent’s courage and leadership. By adding his voice to the growing bipartisan consensus for marriage equality, America has taken one more step toward making our founding principles a reality for every American.”
According to Gregory T. Angelo, executive director of Log Cabin Republicans, Dent’s support for marriage equality builds upon a pro-LGBT record and is a “natural continuation of his commitment to equal rights for all Americans.”
“Congressman Dent has long been an ally of Log Cabin Republicans — from his leadership on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act to his support for same-sex couples in immigration reform, and his stance against bullying of LGBT youth in public schools, Rep. Dent has always shown himself to be a common-sense conservative,” stated Angelo.
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