Rep. Vicki Hartzler (R-MO) wept during a House floor speech as she pleaded with colleagues to stop the Respect for Marriage Act, with Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu (CA) referring to her emotional outburst as “tears of hate.”
Lieu posted the searing response on Twitter following Hartzler’s speech on Thursday.
“Want to see tears of hate?” he tweeted. “Watch the speech below. This MAGA Republican is so hateful of other human beings experiencing the joys of marriage and love that she shed tears of hate.”
Want to see tears of hate?
Watch the speech below. This MAGA Republican is so hateful of other human beings experiencing the joys of marriage and love that she shed tears of hate. https://t.co/XYubxawOFE
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) December 8, 2022
Hartzler’s words provided strong support for traditional marriage, urging House members to oppose the legislation to codify same-sex marriage.
“I’ll tell you my priority. Protect religious liberty, protect people of faith, and protect Americans who believe in the true meaning of marriage. I hope and pray that my colleagues will find the courage to join me in opposing this misguided and this dangerous bill,” she said.
The short video quickly turned viral, with more than 1.4 million views less than an hour after its posting.
The House of Representatives passed the legislation on Thursday, 258-169, sending the bill to the president’s desk where it is expected to be signed into law.
The measure was supported primarily by Democrats, but 39 House Republicans joined in the measure. The bill repeals the Defense of Marriage Act that legally defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman and permitted individual states not to recognize same-sex marriages from other states.
In addition to Lieu’s demeaning response to Hartzler, he posted his disdain for the majority of Republicans who opposed the Respect for Marriage Act.
“The majority of House Republicans are on the wrong side of history,” he tweeted.
The majority of House Republicans are on the wrong side of history. #thursdaymorning truth https://t.co/Q6QegSW1UC
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) December 8, 2022
The Senate previously passed the legislation — which also codifies federal protections for interracial marriages. The 61-36 vote last week included 12 Republican Senators supporting the measure, offering the supermajority needed to pass the 60-vote filibuster threshold.
The Senate Republicans who backed the bill were Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Rob Portman of Ohio, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Mitt Romney of Utah, Roy Blunt of Missouri, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Richard Burr of North Carolina, Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, Dan Sullivan of Alaska, Joni Ernst of Iowa, and Todd Young of Indiana.
Prior to the Senate vote, Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) unsuccessfully attempted to urge fellow Republicans to include protections for anyone with a religious belief or moral conviction that marriage belongs to one man and one woman.
“Instead of subjecting churches, religious nonprofits, and persons of conscience to undue scrutiny or punishment by the federal government because of their views on marriage, we should make explicitly clear that this legislation does not constitute a national policy endorsing a particular view of marriage that threatens the tax-exempt status of faith-based nonprofits,” he wrote. “As we move forward, let us be sure to keep churches, religious charities, and religious universities out of litigation in the first instance,” he said in a letter concerning his proposed Lee Amendment.