A proposed amendment to Wisconsin's constitution defining marriage as between \one man and one woman"" hit the floor of the state Assembly Thursday, drawing heated partisan debate as the last days of the legislative session come to a close.
The proposed amendment was scheduled to be first on the legislative agenda, but when the Assembly reconvened after a seven-hour Democratic caucus, House Speaker John Gard, R-Peshtigo, and Republicans wanted to move the proposal to the end of the agenda.
Democrats argued the Republicans' move went against legislative rules, and the agenda should not change after a caucus.
""No matter how ashamed the Republicans are ... they cannot change the face of the clock,"" said state Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison.
State Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Eau Claire, said Republicans should start the debate so the Legislature can focus on jobs and health care.
""Bring it on,"" he said, alluding to presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. ""Don't be afraid of this issue. But bring it on.""
Republicans said Democrats had no right to object to changing the agenda, since they delayed the debate by going into caucus for a majority of the day.
As of press time, the Assembly had not reached a vote on the proposed amendment.
As debate ensued inside the Assembly Chamber, advocates and opponents of same-sex marriage gathered in the Capitol, carrying signs such as ""Straight man against the gay ban"" and ""Homosexuality is sin.""
Peter McCabe, a Student Services and Finance Committee member and UW-Madison senior, said it is wrong to discriminate against the LGBT community on the basis of ""an unquestioned moral authority that [same-sex marriage opponents] derive.""
Pastor William Bartz, member of the Dane County Association of Evangelicals, said he favored the proposed amendment.
""We want to be sure the good people of sincere faith are being represented,"" he said.
At one point, Bartz and three of his supporters, holding signs saying ""Remember Sodom"" and ""Christ can set you free,"" vocalized their opinions to those outside the Assembly chamber. McCabe and other same-sex marriage supporters surrounded them and began chanting, ""Don't discriminate. Don't amend.""
The state Senate has yet to take up the proposed amendment, as it is awaiting a vote from the Senate Judiciary Committee. To pass it, both houses must approve the amendment in two consecutive legislative sessions, and must then put it to the public in the form of a referendum.
The state Legislative session ends March 11, and the earliest a referendum could occur is spring 2005.
