Religious leaders announced that if the immigration bill adds a gay rights provision they will pull their support of the bill. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., has prepared amendments that would allow for gay American residents to sponsor their partners in the same way that heterosexual couples are allowed to, according to the Washington Post.
Richard Land, a leader of the Southern Baptist Convention, said his group will no longer support the immigration bill if any such amendment is made to it.
"We're extremely hopeful that this bill will remain an immigration bill and not get tangled up with the issue of gay rights," Land said. "But if it did, if it did, the Southern Baptist Convention would not be able to support the bill."
Other religious leaders echoed the sentiments expressed by Land, representatives of the National Association of Evangelicals and the Christian group Sojourners said they too would pull their support from the bill.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who has been working hard to rally Republican support for the immigration bill, would also pull support from the bill if a gay rights amendment were attached.
"If that issue is injected into this bill, this bill will fail. I will not have the support. It will not have my support," Rubio said.
According to the Washington Post, Leahy has not decided whether to include the amendment or not but is facing pressure from gay rights groups to do so.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters that he was conflicted as to how he would vote if a gay rights amendment were added to the immigration bill, called the United American Families Act.
"I would very much like to see it in the bill, but we have to have a bill that has support to get UAFA passed," Schumer said. "That's the conundrum. Because if there's no bill, there's no UAFA, either."
Gay rights groups have been adamant that such a provision be placed in the bill arguing that such a provision shouldn't jeopardize the bill.
"It's pretty dated to consider LGBT equality as a controversial, hot-button issue like these senators are portraying it to be," a statement from Human Rights Campaign read. "In fact, a strong and diverse majority of Americans support equality. These senators are towing a tired line that no long represents mainstream opinion, and they're throwing same-sex couples under the bus in the process."
