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There will be no debate in the Iowa Senate this session on a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, said Monday.
Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs
Gronstal, who lauded the Supreme Court decision handed down Friday overturning the state’s ban on same-sex marriage, was asked by Senate Minority Leader Paul McKinley, R-Chariton, if he would join with Republicans in crafting a bill to move an amendment forward.
“Eleven years ago, you voted in favor of protecting marriage as between one man and one woman,” McKinley said. “Will you pledge to work with me and craft a leadership bill on this important issue and bring it to the floor a vote by this body?”
In response, Gronstal shared a story about his daughter, Kate, telling a group of conservative men that opponents of same-sex marriage “have already lost” and that the younger generation doesn’t care.
“I learned something from my daughter that day. That’s what I see, Sen. McKinley,” Gronstal said. “I see a bunch of people that merely want to profess their love for each other and want state law to recognize that. Is that so wrong? I don’t think that’s so wrong.”
He has learned a lot since he voted in favor of Iowa’s Defense of Marriage Act in 1998, Gronstal said, and he will not join in the crafting of a marriage amendment.
“Friday I hugged my wife. I felt like our love was just a little more meaningful last Friday night, because thousands of other Iowa citizens could hug each other and have the state recognize their love for each other,” he said.
McKinley thanked Gronstal for his honestly, but said Iowans should have the right to vote on the issue and elected officials shouldn’t stand in the way, later saying the Senate leader was engaging in “pure obstruction.”
“Iowa is a sovereign state and I will accept the will of the people but we will not know the will of the people until a vote of the people is taken and it is wrong for Sen. Gronstal to obstruct that vote,” he said.
Below is McKinley’s statement and request for Gronstal to help craft a marriage amendment:
Below is Gronstal’s response:
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