GOP presses state bills limiting gay rights before ruling

FILE- In this Jan. 13, 2015 file photo, Former Atlanta fire chief Kelvin Cochran, third from right, observes a moment of prayer as religious groups rally to support him following his termination in Atlanta. Even as the U.S. Supreme Court gets ready to decide whether gay couples can marry, lawmakers in the South and West are doubling down on the culture wars, backing longshot legislation targeting gay rights. In Georgia, the debate flared this month when Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed fired the city’s fire chief after learning the chief self-published a book describing homosexuality as a perversion. Reed, a Democrat, said Cochran never got city permission to publish the book, but Cochran said he did. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File) FILE- In this Jan. 13, 2015 file photo, Former Atlanta fire chief Kelvin Cochran, third from right, observes a moment of prayer as religious groups rally to support him following his termination in Atlanta. Even as the U.S. Supreme Court gets ready to decide whether gay couples can marry, lawmakers in the South and West are doubling down on the culture wars, backing longshot legislation targeting gay rights. In Georgia, the debate flared this month when Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed fired the city’s fire chief after learning the chief self-published a book describing homosexuality as a perversion. Reed, a Democrat, said Cochran never got city permission to publish the book, but Cochran said he did. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

By Associated Press January 24, 2015 5 min read

ATLANTA (AP) – A Texas lawmaker would strip the salaries from government officials who honor same-sex marriage licenses.

Other states would protect government officials who opt out of performing gay nuptials.

In Georgia, where lawmakers are considering a bill that critics fear could allow businesses to discriminate against gay customers, the former head of the country’s largest Protestant denomination recently urged lawmakers to reign in “erotic liberty.”

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in April and could decide by June whether gay couples can marry, and national opinion polls show U.S. voters increasingly unopposed to gay rights. Yet lawmakers in a handful of states are backing longshot legislation targeting gay rights, doubling down on the culture wars. Most, if not all, of the efforts are led by Republicans.

The bills are more political theatre than serious policy. Few seem to have widespread support among lawmakers, and senior Republicans are not adopting these efforts as their own. In Georgia, well-funded business groups oppose them.