Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick voted in favor Thursday of legislation that protects same-sex and interracial marriages.
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The Middletown Township Republican voted for the bill that was previously passed by the U.S. Senate and now heads to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature.
The bill passed 258-169, with Fitzpatrick and 38 other Republicans supporting it.
Fitzpatrick didn’t issue a statement after his vote.
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The three-term congressman previously supported an earlier version of the bill in summer.
Biden is expected to sign the bill into law, according to a statement from the White House.
Credit: PA Internet News Service
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“Congress took a critical step to ensure that Americans have the right to marry the person they love,” Biden said in a statement.
The measure repeals the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act that defines marriage as between a man and a woman under federal law. Although the legislation does not preclude states from establishing laws outlawing those unions, it would force states to recognize same-sex and interracial marriages performed in other states.
In its Obergefell v. Hodges ruling from 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court approved same-sex unions at the federal level. However, the court’s Dobbs v. Jackson ruling in June rejecting a right to abortion at the federal level prompted questions about federal protections for other rights.
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