Two Republican senators introduced legislation Tuesday that would ban same-sex marriage ceremonies from taking place on military bases. The proposal comes just two months after the House of Representatives approved a similar measure. Nearly a year after “don’t ask, don’t tell” was repealed, Sens. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) co-authored the amendment that would also allow military chaplains to opt out of performing same-sex marriage ceremonies. The House took similar action in July, approving an amendment to the 2013 defense spending bill that would keep the military from spending money on items that would violate the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), the federal same-sex marriage ban. Currently, six states and the District of Columbia allow same-sex marriage, while 31 states have constitutional amendments that ban it. Several plaintiffs in lawsuits challenging DOMA have petitioned the Supreme Court to hear their cases during the court’s next session. A study released Monday by the Palm Center reveals that the military’s recruitment and retention rates have not changed since the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell."
