Biden: Gay 'marriage' inevitable

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Originally published 12:03 a.m., November 24, 2003, updated 12:00 a.m., November 24, 2003

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A leading Senate Democrat yesterday said nationwide same-sex "marriage" is inevitable, and the Republican speaker of the House conceded that congressional action to prevent such unions will be difficult.

"It's going to be something we have to go through as part of the maturation process of the nation," said Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr., Delaware Democrat.

Mr. Biden told "Fox News Sunday" that homosexuals are entitled to the same rights as other Americans, but that getting there will "be an incredibly difficult thing for America to grapple with."

"We're going to go through a process here that is necessary for this nation in terms of how we deal with the rights and the recognition of gay unions. And I don't think that gets settled by a constitutional amendment. It makes it more divisive," Mr. Biden said.

Also appearing on Fox, House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, Illinois Republican, said he supports the idea of a constitutional amendment defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman, but said Congress will not make a move until the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is tested in the courts.

That act, authored by former Rep. Bob Barr, Georgia Republican, was passed in 1996 to prevent homosexual couples from receiving federal benefits. In the event that an individual state allows same-sex "marriage," the federal law would not require other states to recognize that union.

Mr. Barr said last week the law never was intended to tell states how to legislate on the issue and does not prohibit same-sex "marriage" at the state level.

Already, 37 states have laws against same-sex "marriages" -- that they will not be performed in the state, not recognized from out of state, or both.

Only in the event that courts strike down DOMA will Congress consider a constitutional amendment, said Mr. Hastert, who predicted such a measure would pass the House but fail in the Senate. A two-thirds majority in both chambers is required for a constitutional amendment to pass and be sent to the states for ratification by three-fourths of the state legislatures.

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