Despite a threatened veto by Republican Governor Chris Christie, New Jersey Democrats have prioritized a bill that would make New Jersey the seventh state to recognize gay and lesbian couples with marriage.
On Thursday, Christie kept mum on what he would do if lawmakers approve the proposed measure.
“They have a right to set their agenda, I'll set mine, we'll see who gets there first,” Christie told reporters in Camden. “When forced to make a decision, if forced to make a decision on it, I'll make a decision.”
On Sunday, Senate President Stephen Sweeney once again reiterated his support for the bill, saying he had made a “mistake” in not backing the measure in 2010.
“As someone who doesn't like to admit his mistakes, I was wrong,” Sweeney told South Jersey Sunday. “I didn't do the right thing. I looked at it politically, instead of as a civil rights issue, which it really is.”
The delegation gave its support for the measure in a letter to state lawmakers.
“New Jersey has a proud history of civil rights leadership, and we must continue our role in pursuing fairness and equality,” the letter reads. “Other states with a combined population of more than 35 million people already have marriage equality – including our next door neighbor, New York.”
The letter is signed by Senators Frank R. Lautenberg and Robert Menendez and Representatives Rush Holt, Robert Andrews, Albio Sires, Steven Rothman, Bill Pascrell, Frank Pallone, Jr. and Donald Payne.
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