Bipartisan Senators Announce Deal to Codify Same-Sex Marriage

A bipartisan group of Senate negotiators said Monday that they had reached a deal to codify same-sex marriage, thanks to an amendment addressing some senators’ religious liberty concerns. 

Key Quotes: Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) released a statement on their agreement, saying, “Through bipartisan collaboration, we’ve crafted commonsense language to confirm that this legislation fully respects and protects Americans’ religious liberties and diverse beliefs, while leaving intact the core mission of the legislation to protect marriage equality. We look forward to this legislation coming to the floor and are confident that this amendment has helped earn the broad, bipartisan support needed to pass our commonsense legislation into law.”

What’s Next: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) reportedly scheduled a test vote for the bill on Wednesday. Senate Democrats, who would likely all support the bill, would need at least 10 Senate Republicans to overcome the possibility of a filibuster. Same-sex marriage is just one of several issues Congress is preparing to tackle before midterm election winners are sworn in next year. 

How the Media Covered It: Coverage was common in left and center-rated outlets but relatively rare in right-rated outlets on Monday evening. Coverage varied on using the term “marriage equality” outside of quotes.