Yesterday on “Washington Watch,” Rep. Tim Huelskamp called on Congress to hold a vote on his Marriage Protection Amendment, which would impose a national ban on same-sex marriage, as a way to pressure the Supreme Court against deciding in favor of marriage equality. The Kansas Republican told Family Research Council President Tony Perkins that federal courts created “chaos” by striking down bans on same-sex marriage and now “folks are confused about what a marriage is.”

Huelskamp said that if “we don’t protect the traditional basis for marriage, it harms everyone, particularly our young children.” He also agreed with Perkins that legalizing gay marriage will “discourage family formation” and undermine the black community.

“So now is the time when the courts are trying to rule and might decide to redefine or undefine marriage, it is critical not just for individuals and for families but for society as a whole,” Huelskamp said. “At the end of the day, it’s children that are hurt.”

The congressman lamented that “our founders never envisioned a society which would reject a basic understanding of nature” and warned that marriage equality will harm America’s “economic wellbeing.”