Hours after President Barack Obama announced his support for same-sex marriage, U.S. Rep. John Kline and other Republican members of the House Armed Services Committee backed two measures prohibiting the practice on U.S. military bases.
Committee members first approved an amendment that would ban same-sex marriages or "marriage-like" ceremonies at any military instillation or on any property owned, rented or under the control of the U.S. Defense Department. In another vote, the committee voted to protect all service members, and especially chaplains, from persecution for opposing the presence of gays in the military.
The votes came during the committee's review of next year's $642 billion defense bill. During the debate this week, committee members did not specifically mention Obama's comments on gay marriage, but Democrats characterized the GOP amendment banning same-sex marriage as discriminatory.
It remains unclear if the amendment will become law. In 2010, a similar same-sex marriage provision was cut from the final defense bill during negotiations with the White House and Senate.
Kline is a retired Marine colonel whose son is serving in the Army. Staff from Rep. Kline's office did not respond to a request for comment.
