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Bush's Objections to Same-Sex Unions
U.S. Representative Barney Frank
"Incredibly, Mr. Bush is trying to persuade the country that instead of persistent high unemployment, one trillion dollars in new federal debt over the next two years, continued American deaths in Iraq, unhindered progress towards a North Korean nuclear capacity and a bogging down on his agenda in Congress, Americans should be seriously worried about the prospect that two men who love each other might be allowed to become legally and financially responsible for each other. "If the tactic seems familiar, it's because it is. In 1996, faced with Bill Clinton's popularity, the Republicans rolled out the Defense of Marriage Act, asserting -- wholly falsely it is now clear -- that a tidal wave of gay marriages was about to surge out of Hawaii and engulf America. "With President Bush's popularity dropping and the serious problems confronting America worsening, the Administration seeks to divert attention by demagoguing on the issue of same-sex unions. This is a far cry from October of 2000 when, seeking votes from supporters of equal rights, Dick Cheney told a national television audience that the question of same-sex relationships should be left to the states, and that there should be no federal policy on the matter. "Now, with the votes gained from that appeal safely in hand, and with political troubles mounting, Mr. Rove has prescribed a little demagogic dishonesty. As with the war in Iraq, we are now told that Mr. Cheney's campaign assertion is to be filed under the heading of "never mind," and the American people are to be persuaded that repelling the threat of same-sex couples rivals unemployment, trillions in new debt, and a quagmire in Iraq as problems facing the nation." |
Rep. Barney Frank says Bush's objections to same-sex marriages are strictly political