July 14, 2004 6:13 AM

Another poor and transparent feint from the Right

Gay marriage bill all but dead in Senate

Thankfully, the "issue" of gay marriage appears to be dead- at least this time around. Those who feel strongly will no doubt attempt to resurrect the attempt to pass something couched in seemingly benign language ("Defense of Marriage"? Well, who could possibly be against that?). Wherever, whenever is yet to be determined, but we have not seen the last of this battle.

Yes, if I was going to have a press conference celebrating the joys of heterosexuality, this is exactly what I'd wear:

Wearing a jacket that is gayest shade of orange known to man to a Federal Marriage Amendment press conference is like walking down 17th St. wearing nothing but leather chaps. Poor Senator Santorum can barely restrain himself.

I find it interesting that, though we have so many other pressing issues facing us, Social Conservatives have chosen to fight a symbolic battle knowing they will lose and lose badly.

Short on votes and beset by internal divisions, Senate Republicans struggled today to salvage a respectable defeat for a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, an issue that President Bush pushed toward the top of the election-year agenda.

"This issue is not going away," Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee said in a virtual concession that the measure would fall short of the 60 votes needed to advance past a Wednesday test vote. "Will it be back? Absolutely, yes," he added.

Are Republicans so devoid of ideas that they must fight a battle that they know they will not and cannot win? Are they so in thrall to Social Conservatives that they are willing to devote energy to this futile pursuit when so much remains to be done?

From where I sit, this battle is designed to serve only one purpose: to drive yet another wedge into the American electorate. Knowing they cannot win on the issues in November, Republicans are desperately resorting to hot button issues in an effort to deflect attention from the fact that their Emperor has no clothes. Now that Americans seem to be realizing that the Emperor is indeed sans culottes, what else can a party concerned only about maintaing political power do?

Bush urged the Republican-controlled Congress last February to approve a constitutional amendment, saying it was needed to stop judges from changing the definition of the "most enduring human institution."

The odds have never favored passage in the current Congress, in part because many conservatives are hesitant to overrule state prerogatives in the area of issues such as marriage.

But Republican strategists hope to force Democrats to choose between voting the wishes of their liberal constituents, some of whom favor gay marriage, or in favor of an amendment that polls show is favored by a heavy majority of the country.

What better way to deflect attention from the economy and Iraq than to force Democrats into a corner? Then the Republican attack dogs can fire up their television ads, in which they will point to Democrats as the agents of Satan and the enemies of all that is good and righteous and holy. Give me a break....

What it truly sad about this endeavor is that Republicans are couching this battle in terms designed to hide the reality that it's about naked political power- period.

"It's about the children...."

"It's about defending society from extinction...."

"It's about defending God's Law...."

What a load of crap.

"There is a master plan out there from those who want to destroy the institution of marriage to, first of all, begin to take this issue in a few select courts throughout this country at the state level," said Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo. Pointing to rulings in Vermont and Massachusetts, he said that "once they get their favorable rulings from activist judges ... they want to take it to the federal courts and they'll eventually move it to the Supreme Court."

In a strongly worded speech, Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., said some criticism runs along these lines: "Marriage is hate. Marriage is a stain. Marriage is an evil thing. That's what we hear. People who stand for traditional marriage are haters, they're bashers, they're mean-spirited, they're intolerant. ... Well, we're not," he added.

Interesting how they manage to camoflage their hatred by accusing the opposition of hating the institution of marriage and the people who would "defend" it, isn't it?

Speaking for the opposition, what I hate is the idea of Republicans attempting to enshrine their hatred of an entire class of Americans in the Constitution. If there is a more despicable act of political treason, I'm not sure what it could be. Republicans are blissfully unaware that they are heading down a slippery slope.

Americans should be able to recognize this disingenuousness for the attempt to legislate discrimination that it is. We should be thankful that it is as difficult and onerous to amend the Constitution as it is. This thinly-veiled attempt to legislate homosexuals into permanent second-class status is both hateful and despicable. If we have any sense of decency, we will all reject this as unacceptable and work towards voting these hateful excuses for human beings into the political obscurity they so richly deserve.

WAKE UP AND SMELL THE CAT LITTER! If Republicans succeed in heading down this slippery slope, where will they stop? Who will stand up for you when they come knocking on your door?

To me, this is not about whether or not gays should be allowed to marry (hey, if you're opposed to gay marriage, don't have one....). It's about ensuring that Republicans are not allowed to nibble away at the civil rights of an entire class of Americans. When they are done there, do you really think they're going to stop? Not if you have anything resembling a grip on reality.

WE DESERVE BETTER.

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on July 14, 2004 6:13 AM.

There just ain't enough lipstick to pretty up this pig was the previous entry in this blog.

Perhaps there may be hope for humanity.... is the next entry in this blog.

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