The fever of support for the antigay marriage constitutional amendment appears to have broken and the body politic is beginning to
recover.
That acknowledgement came in a statement from Sen. George Allen, R-Va., that he would not support such an amendment,
though he made sure to state that he supports the traditional marriage of a man and a woman. It was published in the Richmond
Times-Dispatch July 16.
Allen chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the principle fundraising body to elect Republicans to the Senate. No
one doubts his conservative credentials, but even more than that, Allen has demonstrated a chameleon-like ability to read the
political winds and modify positions as public opinion shifts.
Majority Leader Bill Frist, whose comments on television at the end of June boosted prospects for the amendment, has backed
away a bit. He now calls a constitution amendment 'one alternative' to the likelihood that Massachusetts will legalize same sex
marriage.
The three openly gay members of Congress, Barney Frank, D-Mass,, Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisc., have sent
a letter to their colleagues urging them not to support the proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage.
'What is most radical about this amendment is not that it defines marriage, but that it takes away from each of the 50 states the
right to decide this question and gives it for the first time in our 200-year history to the federal government,' read the letter, which was
released on July 15.
'The argument against such a centralized approach was articulated very well during the 2000 presidential campaign by ... vice
presidential candidate Dick Cheney' during a televised debate, they wrote.
'The fact of the matter is, we live in a free society, and freedom means freedom for everybody,' said Cheney. 'I think that means
that people should be free to enter into any kind of relationship they want to enter into.'
When it came to licensing marriage, Cheney said, it 'is regulated by the states. I think different states are likely to come to different
conclusions, and that's appropriate. I don't think there should necessarily be a federal policy in this area.'
The amendment continues to pick up cosponsors in the House, up to 45 at last count. Most are Republicans, most represent
southern and rural areas where religious fundamentalism is more prevalent, and where polling numbers run strongly in support of
traditional marriage.
But 45 cosponsors are just 10% of all Representatives, while passing a constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds vote of
each chamber.
Even Pat Robertson sees it as an act of futility. 'The possibility of getting a constitutional amendment of that magnitude through
both houses of Congress on a two-thirds vote and then through three-quarters of the state legislatures is virtually impossible,' he told
Paula Zahn on July 17 broadcast on CNN.
The Human Rights Campaign has launched an online petition drive to fight for civil marriage equality. The Web site,
www.millionformarriage.org, went public on July 18. Visitors will be able to both sign the petition and send and e-mail notices of the
effort to whomever they choose.
A new Web campaign was also launched to fight the amendment. The campaign, called DontAmend.com, is promising to be the
largest online gay mobilization in history.
DontAmend.com is cofounded by Robin Tyler and John Aravosis, two of the founders of the StopDrLaura.com campaign, which
ran a successful boycott of Dr. Laura Schlessinger's then-new TV show three years ago. The show was subsequently canceled after
more than 170 advertisers left as a result of the campaign.
