Senate Judiciary Committee Votes 10-8 To Repeal Defense Of Marriage But If And When Law Will Be Rescinded Remains Unclear

The Senate judiciary committee voted 10-8 on Thursday in favour of repealing the Defense of Marriage Act, but it remains unclear if and when the controversial law will be wiped off the books. Enacted 15 years ago, the law effectively denies federal benefits to gays and lesbians who now can legally marry in six states and the District of Columbia. Its repeal, reports The AFP, sponsored by Diane Feinstein, a Democrat from California and former mayor of gay-friendly San Francisco, would be a victory for the gay rights movement, and a major setback for social conservatives. "We have 131,000 married (gay) couples, and the discriminatory nature of DOMA is showing up throughout the business and professional communities of this country," said Feinstein in a pre-vote debate. Under DOMA, marriage is defined in federal law exclusively as "a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife." It also enables states without gay marriage the power to not recognize same-sex vows made elsewhere. Those who voted Thursday in favour of repeal included senators who had voted back in 1996 in favour of DOMA, including chairman Patrick Leahy from the liberal state of Vermont where gay marriage is recognized. "I don't care if this wins me votes or loses me votes... Every generation of senators get a chance to end some form of discrimination," said Dick Durbin, a fellow Democrat from Illinois. But Republicans -- who are fighting hard to prevent a full Senate vote on repealing DOMA -- argued that gay marriage was a matter for each of the 50 states, and not Washington, to deal with. "The American people continue to support traditional marriage," added Senator John Cornyn, from Texas. Fellow Republican Tom Coburn from Oklahoma said that, with the United States struggling with its worst economic slump in decades, same sex marriage was not a priority. "Now is not the time," he said. "We ought to be spending our time getting out of the hole we're in."