The effort to have the U.S. Senate approve a Constitutional amendment banning gay marriage goes down to defeat. The Senate came up 11 votes short of the 60 votes needed to cut off a filibuster and force a vote. Both Senators Kit Bond and Jim Talent support the idea. Bond says the idea is embraced by most Missourians, as well, with 71 percent of Missouri voters approving this state’s constitutional amendment in 2004. Bond rejects suggestions there is really no need for a Constitutional amendment recognizing marriage as a union between a man and a woman. He says activist judges throughout the country are imposing their own views in this regard, adding nine states already face legal challenges to their marriage laws. Senator Talent says he will continue to fight for traditional marriage. He says he’s disappointed, but not surprised by the failure to break the filibuster.
