Equality is being
held hostage by Senate Republicans:
Several state senators and Senate staff members have said in recent days that the Republicans needed one more caucus meeting to decide whether to allow a vote on the marriage issue. Same-sex marriage is opposed by a large majority of the Republican caucus, but the caucus is torn over whether to allow a vote in the Senate, knowing it could pass with a combination of Democratic and Republican votes.
Note:
It remains unclear whether the marriage measure would pass or fail in a Senate vote. At present, there are 31 senators openly supporting the measure, one vote shy of the 32 needed to pass a bill. The supporters include 29 of the 30 Senate Democrats and 2 of the 32 Senate Republicans. Several other Republican senators have said they remain undecided.
