House Armed Services Committee votes no gay marriage on military bases

Hours after President Barack Obama became the first president to endorse same-sex marriage, the House Armed Service Committee voted to approve a measure banning it on US military bases.

The Republican-led amendment -- approved Wednesday -- bars "marriage or marriage-like ceremonies" from taking place on military bases, according to the Daily News.

Approved by 37 Republicans and 24 Democrats, the measure will be included in the fiscal 2013 defense authorization bill.

It is projected to reach the full House later this month, the Daily News said.

House Republicans also voted Wednesday night to bar the Justice Department from using federal funds to oppose the Defense of Marriage Act, The Washington Post reported.

"On an historic day and in the dark of the night, House Republicans have voted to tie the hands of the Obama Administration with respect to their efforts to end discrimination against America's families," Drew Hammill, a spokesman for House Minority Leader Democrat Nancy Pelosi told the Post.

Todd Akin (R-Mo.) defended the amendment barring same-sex marriage on bases, saying the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" has led to "stories of military chaplains facing censorship for their opposition to the liberal agenda."

"Chaplains and service members should not face recrimination or persecution in the military from standing strong on their religious beliefs in opposition to homosexuality," he told The Washington Post.

A major advocate for the repeal of DADT, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network released a statement regarding the approval, saying the Pentagon "has already made it clear -- and appropriately so -- that decisions about the use of facilities should be made on a sexual orientation neutral basis."