Washington, D.C. -
President George W. Bush's Support of the Federal Marriage Amendment is deemed a declaration of war on Gay America the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force warned Tuesday night. And it said the president is courting civil disobedience if he pursues his course.
In an interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer, Bush indicated earlier Tuesday night that he leaning towards supporting the amendment, currently in Congress. (365gay.com story)
"If necessary, I will support a constitutional amendment which would honor marriage between a man and a woman, codify that, and will," Bush said.
Bush said that he believes the Massachusetts high court went too far in ruling that state cannot prevent gays from marrying.
"Let me tell you, the court I thought overreached its bounds as a court. It did the job of the legislature. It was a very activist court in making the decision it made. As you know, I'm a person who believes in judicial restraint, as opposed to judicial activism that takes the place of the Legislative Branch."
Sawyer reminded him that Vice President Cheney has spoken out in favor of civil unions and in the 2000 election campaign Bush himself had said that it was a state issue.
"That's right," the president replied. "Except and unless judicial rulings undermine the sanctity of marriage. In which case, we may need a Constitutional amendment.
"Tolerance and belief in marriage aren't mutually exclusive points of view," the president said.
"I do believe in the sanctity of marriage," he added. "It's an important differentiation … but I don't see that as conflict with being a tolerant person or an understanding person."
The Human Rights Campaign cautioned Bush immediately after the program that to support the amendment as it now appears in Congress could bar any state from granting marriage rights and could permanently deny any legal protections to same-sex couples - including civil unions, even if they were granted by state legislatures.
"To use this country's most cherished document to strip away individual liberty and freedom would be nothing short of a disgrace - with which the vast majority of the American people disagree," said HRC Political Director Winnie Stachelberg in a statement.
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force was more direct.
"We consider this a declaration of war on gay America," said a statement from NGLTF Executive Director Matt Foreman.
"We cannot and will not be silent in the face of this attempt to enshrine our community with second class citizenship in this nation's most sacred document. The President is clearly pandering to the political and religious extremists that are his base. We did not ask for this fight, but if the President wants one, he will have one. And that fight will involve civil disobedience across this country."
Rep. Dick Gephardt, who is running for the Democratic Party presidential nomination accused Bush of attempting to " polarize the election."
" I strongly oppose this effort as purely political and unnecessarily divisive at the expense of those who already suffer from discrimination," Gephardt said.
"This amendment isn't about protecting marriage, it is about playing politics," said Dave Noble, National Stonewall Democrats Executive Director.
by Paul Johnson
365Gay.com Newscenter
Washington Bureau Chief
©365Gay.com® 2003
In an interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer, Bush indicated earlier Tuesday night that he leaning towards supporting the amendment, currently in Congress. (365gay.com story)
"If necessary, I will support a constitutional amendment which would honor marriage between a man and a woman, codify that, and will," Bush said.
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Bush said that he believes the Massachusetts high court went too far in ruling that state cannot prevent gays from marrying.
"Let me tell you, the court I thought overreached its bounds as a court. It did the job of the legislature. It was a very activist court in making the decision it made. As you know, I'm a person who believes in judicial restraint, as opposed to judicial activism that takes the place of the Legislative Branch."
Sawyer reminded him that Vice President Cheney has spoken out in favor of civil unions and in the 2000 election campaign Bush himself had said that it was a state issue.
"That's right," the president replied. "Except and unless judicial rulings undermine the sanctity of marriage. In which case, we may need a Constitutional amendment.
"Tolerance and belief in marriage aren't mutually exclusive points of view," the president said.
"I do believe in the sanctity of marriage," he added. "It's an important differentiation … but I don't see that as conflict with being a tolerant person or an understanding person."
The Human Rights Campaign cautioned Bush immediately after the program that to support the amendment as it now appears in Congress could bar any state from granting marriage rights and could permanently deny any legal protections to same-sex couples - including civil unions, even if they were granted by state legislatures.
"To use this country's most cherished document to strip away individual liberty and freedom would be nothing short of a disgrace - with which the vast majority of the American people disagree," said HRC Political Director Winnie Stachelberg in a statement.
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force was more direct.
"We consider this a declaration of war on gay America," said a statement from NGLTF Executive Director Matt Foreman.
"We cannot and will not be silent in the face of this attempt to enshrine our community with second class citizenship in this nation's most sacred document. The President is clearly pandering to the political and religious extremists that are his base. We did not ask for this fight, but if the President wants one, he will have one. And that fight will involve civil disobedience across this country."
Rep. Dick Gephardt, who is running for the Democratic Party presidential nomination accused Bush of attempting to " polarize the election."
" I strongly oppose this effort as purely political and unnecessarily divisive at the expense of those who already suffer from discrimination," Gephardt said.
"This amendment isn't about protecting marriage, it is about playing politics," said Dave Noble, National Stonewall Democrats Executive Director.
by Paul Johnson
365Gay.com Newscenter
Washington Bureau Chief
©365Gay.com® 2003
This article originally appeared on 365gay.com. Republished with permission.
