CNN "Newsroom" - Transcript: Employment Non-Discrimination Act

Interview

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BLITZER: Just minutes from now, an historic vote set to take place on the floor of the United States Senate. It's a measure that would ban workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. A similar bill failed 17 years ago. If it passes -- it's expected to -- it would be a major milestone in what's been a year of wins for gay rights advocates. But there's a catch. It will then go to the Republican-led House of Representatives where it potentially could die.

Moments ago, the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, had this message for the House Speaker John Boehner.

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SEN. HARRY REID, (D-NV), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: Speaker Boehner, please, please do what is right for the American people. Let's do this legislation. It is fair. This legislation's only about fairness. More than 80 percent of the American people already believe it's the law. So let's do it.

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BLITZER: Joining us now, Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin. Owns a piece of history herself as the country's first openly gay United States Senator.

Senator, thanks very much for coming in.

SEN. TAMMY BALDWIN, (D), WISCONSIN: It's a delight to join you, Wolf. Thank you.

BLITZER: It looks like, correct me if I'm wrong, all Senate Democrats will vote in favor of this legislation in the coming minutes, is that right?

BALDWIN: Yes, it is. We have all of the Democrats and now growing number of Republicans. This is truly bipartisan legislation in the Senate. You talked about the failure of the bill 17 years ago. That was failure on a simple majority. But it to pass the 60-vote threshold these days, and it will.

BLITZER: How many Republicans do you think will support the legislation?

BALDWIN: I'm thinking, by the time all is said and done, we could get up to nine or 10. That would be amazing. We certainly -- I would welcome any last-minute surprises.

BLITZER: I'm hearing John McCain will vote in favor of the legislation. I assume you're hearing the same thing, right?

BALDWIN: You know, John McCain voted for cloture, the procedural vote that immediately preceded the one we're about to cast. He voted yes. I think that's a great sign. I hope that we'll see others follow suit.

BLITZER: But it's got -- if it passes the Senate, almost certainly will in the coming minutes, it's got a much tougher ride in the House of representatives, which is Republican controlled. What do you anticipate will happen there?

BALDWIN: Well, you know, the issue is whether Speaker Boehner will bring it up for a vote. You know, during the government shutdown, we kept saying to him, bring the funding resolution up for a vote. If you bring it for a vote, we know it will pass. I served in the House many years. My vote counts were pretty accurate back then. And I think that even today, if Speaker Boehner were to put this before the House of Representatives, we would gain a bipartisan majority vote. But he has to do that for us. I'm calling on his courage and leadership to do so.

BLITZER: You've heard all of the arguments made why this vote in favor is a bad idea. What's the most compelling argument that you've heard from the other side? Do any of the arguments resonate in your mind?

BALDWIN: You know, the debate actually has been quite interesting in the U.S. Senate. There was only one floor speech in opposition. There was a lot of negotiation that happened outside of the Senate floor and it centered mainly on the issue of which religious organization should be exempt and how far should that exemption go? We did cast a couple of votes on amendments on that issue. But really, the opposition in the Senate debate was really muted. And I think that reflects where the country is right now. You know, we aspire to be a little bit more equal, not less these days.

BLITZER: So how does the -- if it becomes the law of the land, what about these religious organizations who believe that homosexuality is a sin? How will they have to deal with it?

BALDWIN: Well, they won't, because that is the subject of the religious exemption in the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. The First Amendment is clear. And it is adopted in specific statutory language that was negotiated with religious groups and with a bipartisan group of legislators who sponsors the -- sponsors the measure, including myself.

BLITZER: In Wisconsin, your home state, this has been the law for a long time, right?

BALDWIN: Wisconsin was the first state to offer employment protections on the basis of sexual orientation back in 1982. And I would add that it was signed into law by a Republican governor, Lee Sherman Dreyfus. Since then, a number of other states have come forward to pass these very important laws. But still, a very significant population in the United States lacks these protections.

BLITZER: Has there been any serious problems over the past decades in Wisconsin in implementing these anti-discrimination laws?

BALDWIN: There have not been. And an exhaustive review was done in the various states that have Employment Non-Discrimination Acts or similar statutes on their books in order to guide us in drafting this federal legislation. I think we found, by and large, these are worked very well.

And I would add it's important to have the substantive tools to fight against discrimination, but the symbolic statement is also very important, to say it's wrong to discriminate and that every American deserves the opportunity to be judged based on their work ethic, their skills, their qualifications for a job, and not extraneous factors.

BLITZER: One final question. What does this legislation mean to you personally, Senator?

BALDWIN: I have to say this has been a long, hard fight. I know, from so many friends and former clients when I was an attorney practicing law, I know about the bitterness of discrimination in the employment setting and other settings. This is such a wonderful step. And I'm very proud of my colleagues of both parties in the Senate. And I think it's a powerful step forward for our country.

BLITZER: Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin.

Senator, I know you have to rush off and vote. We'll see the roll call as it happens here on CNN.

Thanks very much.

BALDWIN: Thank you.

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