Bush to gays: go f@$# yourselves — and do it out of wedlock

So Bush endorses a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage: Bush said he was acting in accord with the “overwhelming consensus” of Americans. The “voice of the people” must be heard, he said, in the face of “activist judges” and local officials who are allowing gay marriages. He specifically mentioned recent court rulings in Massachusetts and ...

By , a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast.

So Bush endorses a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage:

Bush said he was acting in accord with the “overwhelming consensus” of Americans. The “voice of the people” must be heard, he said, in the face of “activist judges” and local officials who are allowing gay marriages. He specifically mentioned recent court rulings in Massachusetts and the issuance of same-sex marriage licenses in San Francisco. “If we are to prevent the meaning of marriage from being changed forever, our nation must enact a constitutional amendment to protect marriage in America,” the president said in a televised appearance in the White House Roosevelt Room.

I still don’t think it will happen — and just to be clear, I sure as hell don’t think it should happen. [But the “voice of the people”?–ed. Yeah, I’m pretty sure the voice of the people would have supported a flag-burning amendment back in 1988, but that would have been an equally dumb-ass amendment. The Republic is still standing despite that non-action, by the way.] A question — is this a proposal that Bush genuinely believes in and is exploiting for political gain, or is this a proposal that Bush knows won’t become law and is exploiting for political gain? Discuss below. UPDATE: Good discussion!! ANOTHER UPDATE: It goes without saying that Andrew Sullivan will be the place to go on this topic. This post makes an excellent point about the fact that the “full faith and credit” clause in the Constitution does not apply to marriage.

Daniel W. Drezner is a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast. Twitter: @dandrezner

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