Pelosi: No House Role in D.C. Gay Marriage Law
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) made clear Wednesday she has no desire to wade into the D.C. Council’s decision on Tuesday to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states.“I don’t think the Congress should intervene there in terms of their recognitions of marriages in states that allow them any more than we should intervene in New York,— Pelosi told reporters at her weekly press conference Wednesday morning. The council’s decision follows a similar one by the Empire State last year.Under the District’s home rule charter, lawmakers could weigh in on the decision within 30 days. By leaving the measure alone, Congress would allow it to become law. But while Pelosi, who has long been a staunch advocate of gay rights, signaled tacit approval for the District’s action, she said federal lawmakers should not go further to force the federal government to follow suit. She noted Democrats have already addressed gay rights issues, pointing to House passage last week of hate crimes legislation, and said the focus now should be reviving the economy and other sweeping reforms of energy, health care and education policy. “Right now our agenda is jobs, jobs, jobs, jobs, jobs,— she said.