North Dakota lawmakers hear emotional testimony on resolution against same-sex marriage
Bradley King of Bismarck holds up a photo of his daughter and her wife during a committee hearing on a resolution opposing same-sex marriage on March 12, 2025. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)
A North Dakota Senate committee voted 6-1 Wednesday to not issue a recommendation on a House resolution urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn same-sex marriage.
Sen. Ryan Braunberger, D-Fargo, the only vote against the recommendation, said he wants voters to know exactly where he stands on the issue. He also pointed out the organization supporting the resolution, MassResistance, has been labeled an anti-LGBTQ hate group.
'I want my constituents to know that I disagree with this wholeheartedly,' Braunberger said. 'This bill is coming from a place of hate.'
Supporters and opponents of House Concurrent Resolution 3013, sponsored by Rep. Bill Tveit, R-Hazen, delivered pointed, and at times emotional, testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The resolution asks the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which has protected same-sex marriage. The resolution passed the House on a 52-40 vote in February.
'It's past time for North Dakota citizens to speak their displeasure with this Supreme Court decision and call for restoration of the definition of marriage as only of the legal union between a man and a woman,' Tveit said.
North Dakota resolution urging end to same-sex marriage advances
Arthur Schaper, a field director for MassResistance, testified remotely during the hearing.
'It is a crime against nature to teach anyone that they are born homosexual or transgender,' Schaper told lawmakers. 'These patterns of behavior are inherently harmful to individuals and they should not be granted a privileged status in marriage.'
MassResistance was labeled an anti-LGBTQ hate group by the GLAAD Accountability Project, an organization that catalogs anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and discriminatory actions taken by lawmakers, religious leaders and organizations.
More than 330 people submitted testimony on the measure ahead of the public hearing, most opposing the resolution.
The first person to testify in opposition to the resolution Wednesday was Rep. Matt Ruby, R- Minot, who voted in support of the measure when it passed the House – a decision he told the committee he now regrets.
'I knew before we were done with that floor session that I had made a mistake,' Ruby said. 'I've regretted a lot of votes over my four sessions. This is the first time I've been disappointed with myself over a vote.'
He added he hopes the Senate can defeat Tveit's resolution.
Bradley King of Bismarck testified in opposition to the measure and said he raised his family here because he thought it was a great place to have children.
King held up a picture of his daughter, a middle school teacher, and her wife. He told the committee members how proud he was to walk her down the aisle and that her marriage isn't hurting anybody.
'Right now, you are looking at one angry father,' King said. 'I personally feel that this is an attack on my daughter.'
After 45 minutes of testimony from each side, the hearing was closed and members decided to send the resolution to a vote of the full Senate without a committee recommendation.
Sen. Janne Myrdal, R-Edinburg, said she and many other lawmakers had been getting hateful emails and messages leading up to the hearing.
'I just think it's disgusting on either side, doesn't matter what side it is,' Myrdal said.
Sen. Diane Larson, R-Bismarck, chair of the committee, reiterated that the Legislature needs to take up all bills for final votes in each chamber, regardless of their content.
Rep. Austin Foss, D-Fargo, who strongly advocated against the resolution before it passed in the House, was among those who attended the committee hearing.
'I'm emotionally beat. You saw some real hatred, real hatred from the true bill sponsor, which is MassResistance,' Foss said after the hearing. 'It's very, very outdated ideas that I thought we had put to bed, but I guess not, so that was really hard to hear.'
Foss said he's been hearing unacceptance and hatred for his whole life and had little sympathy for lawmakers receiving angry phone calls for the last week.
'I've also gotten hate when I was door knocking, when I was campaigning. I got hate from people for just being who I am,' he said. 'That hatred coming from those individuals, we deal with that every day.'
SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Miami Herald
33 minutes ago
- Miami Herald
Is Elon Musk right to oppose the budget bill? What Americans said in a new poll
During his public falling out with President Donald Trump, Elon Musk slammed the president's proposed spending bill — dubbed the 'One Big Beautiful Bill' — claiming it will balloon the deficit. It turns out, most Americans agree with his critique, new polling reveals. In the latest Economist/YouGov poll, half of respondents were asked to react to a statement from Musk on the GOP-backed spending bill, which passed in the House without a single Democratic vote. The legislation, Musk wrote on X on June 3, 'will massively increase the already gigantic budget deficit to $2.5 trillion and burden (American) citizens with crushingly unsustainable debt.' A majority of respondents, 56%, said they agreed with this statement, while just 17% said they disagreed. More than one-quarter, 27%, said they were unsure. The answers were largely linked to partisan affiliation, with Democrats largely siding with Musk for a change. Seventy-two percent of Democrats said they concurred with the billionaire's statement about the spending bill, as did 55% of independents. Among Republicans, a plurality, 44%, said they agreed. The poll — which sampled 1,533 U.S. adults June 6-9 — posed the same statement before the other half of respondents, but this time, it did not attribute it to Musk. Without reference to Musk, a slightly smaller share, 49%, said they agreed with the statement, while 23% said they disagreed. Smaller shares of Republicans, independents and Democrats agreed, though Democrats saw the largest decrease in support — from 72% to 60%. The poll has a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points. More on the 'One Big Beautiful Bill' The spending bill, which provides funding for fiscal year 2025, passed in the House in a 215-214 vote in late May and is now under consideration in the Senate. It contains many pieces of Trump's agenda, including a road map to extend the 2017 tax cuts, as well as an increase in funding for the Pentagon and border security, according to previous reporting from McClatchy News. At the same time, it slashes funding for social programs like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Further — to Musk's point — it would increase the federal deficit by $3.8 trillion over the next 10 years, according to an analysis from the Congressional Budget Office, a nonpartisan agency. In addition to Musk, the bill has received criticism from several other prominent conservatives in Congress. One of the most vocal opponents has been Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who wrote on X that 'the spending proposed in this bill is unsustainable, we cannot continue spending at these levels if we want to truly tackle our debt.' Other Republican lawmakers have come out in defense of the bill, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has said the legislation will deliver 'historic tax relief, ensure our border stays secure, strengthen our military, and produce historic savings.' Meanwhile, Democrats have been united in their opposition. In a statement, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries labeled the bill 'the GOP Tax Scam' and said it would rip 'healthcare and food assistance away from millions of people in order to provide tax cuts to the wealthy, the well-off and the well-connected.'
Yahoo
35 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Old robbery footage misrepresented amid LA anti-deportation protests
"Horrifying. LA shop owner attacked and tased by lawless rioters who destroy his store during LA's anti-American sovereignty riots," says a June 8, 2025 post on X. The post comes from Brandon Straka, one of more than 1,500 people who was convicted in relation to the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol and later pardoned by President Donald Trump. Similar posts spread across X amid several days of protests that Los Angeles officials said were initially peaceful but punctuated by scattered violence, with demonstrators torching cars and security forces firing tear gas. The tensions in Los Angeles, home to a large Latino population, were triggered by raids and dozens of arrests of what authorities say are undocumented migrants and gang members. They continued to escalate over several days, with Trump clashing with California leaders as he went over their heads to deploy the state's National Guard and active-duty US Marines to the city. The upheaval has seen some stores ransacked, according to local media reports and the Los Angeles Police Department, which urged downtown businesses and residents in a June 9 post on X to report any vandalism, damage or looting they observed (archived here and here). But the video shared by Straka and others online is several months old and unrelated to the anti-deportation protests. A reverse image search surfaced the same video in local news articles and posts dated to October 2024 (archived here, here and here). Those reports, and others covering the incident, described a street takeover during the early morning hours of October 6 in which a mob of people violently pushed their way inside a 7-Eleven in Anaheim and pillaged it, assaulting the clerk who tried to keep them out in the process (archived here). The video was credited to an Instagram user, "@carlos_kickback_3" (archived here). AFP reached out to the account for a comment, but no response was forthcoming. According to reports, the incident took place at a 7-Eleven on Knott Avenue in Anaheim (archived here). Geolocation of the footage confirms the location (archived here). The location is several miles away from the complex of federal and municipal buildings near the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles, where the protests have centered -- and also from other protest sites in Paramount and Compton. AFP has debunked other misinformation about the tumult in Los Angeles here.
New York Post
39 minutes ago
- New York Post
NYC's destructive Democratic candidates: Letters
The Issue: The nine Democratic candidates in New York City's mayoral race. The recent New York City mayoral debate underscores the putrefied state of the Democratic Party ('Mayoral Race to the Bottom,' Editorial, June 8). While correctly targeting ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the candidates each exposed themselves as leftist extremists and revealed their disgust for what previously made the Democratic Party an exemplar in American politics. It's gone from a party that hailed religion, country and family to one that is now based on grievance, division and dependency. The decline of New York City continues. Advertisement James McCaffrey Yonkers Hopefully, voters will heed The Post's warnings that 'anti-Trump performative politics loses ground on every front.' Advertisement The problem with the current group of candidates is that no one stands out as an individual thinker. The Democrats who debated last week seem to have forgotten that President Trump happens to be one of New York City's biggest cheerleaders. The one who recognizes that Trump wants what's best for the city — and that fighting him will be counterproductive and a losing proposition — will be the candidate who stands out. J.J. Crovatto Ramsey, NJ Advertisement The Post must not endorse Cuomo as being the lesser of two evils. I was born, raised and lived in Brooklyn and New York City for over 53 years. Going forward, we need a mayor who truly wants to improve things for all New Yorkers. Please be very careful in what you wish for. Vincent Ruggiero Advertisement Scottsdale, Ariz. Michael Goodwin says that the mayoral candidates talk so radically 'that it sometimes sounds like the beginnings of a secession movement ('Candidates race to the bottom,' June 5).' He is right: For years, the radicals who dominate the Democratic Party in New York and throughout the country have given us sanctuary cities, violent antisemitic protests and resistance against anything President Trump does. Wake up, America. If it looks like secession, walks like secession and talks like secession, it is secession. Stuart Ellison Brooklyn Election time in New York City brings great comical relief to people outside New York. It reminds me of 'The Dating Game.' One contestant is a Marxist with a penchant for racism. The next is a Jack Kevorkian wannabe who is known for being a 'hands-on' narcissist who loves to exploit the elderly. Finally, we have your average Joe. He seems way over his head but talks a good game. Advertisement It is going to be an interesting show. John Fleming Punta Gorda, Fla. The Issue: ABC suspending Terry Moran for comments against Stephen Miller and President Trump. ABC News' laughable response that it 'stands for objectivity and impartiality' flies in the face of major Trump-hater George Stephanopoulos, as and the biased attack orchestrated by David Muir and Linsey Davis when they fact-checked President Trump but not Kamala Harris ('Terry's Moran-ic tirade,' June 9). Advertisement ABC's coverage of the Trump administration is a shameful display of Trump Derangement Syndrome. Anthony Scro Whitestone It's Terry Moran who must seek help for his mental state, not Stephen Miller. What's more hysterical is that ABC News suspended Moran because it doesn't condone that sort of behavioral impartiality. Lest we forget Stephanopoulis, who contributed to the lies regarding E. Jean Carroll and cost ABC $15 million. Advertisement Moran is the epitome of the media as a whole. Kevin Judge Naples, Fla. Want to weigh in on today's stories? Send your thoughts (along with your full name and city of residence) to letters@ Letters are subject to editing for clarity, length, accuracy, and style.
