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Bush Urges Congress to Pass Amendment Banning Same-Sex Marriage
June 3 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush, calling marriage the ``most enduring and important human institution,'' urged Congress to pass a constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage in the U.S.
``Ages of experience have taught us that the commitment of a husband and a wife to love and to serve one another promotes the welfare of children and the stability of society,'' Bush said in his weekly radio address. ``Government, by recognizing and protecting marriage, serves the interests of all.''
The Senate Judiciary Committee last month approved, along party lines, a proposed constitutional amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and woman. The Republican- controlled Senate might vote on the measure as soon as next week. It has little chance of passage because it would require a two- thirds majority, and Republicans have just 55 of the 100 seats.
Democrats accuse Republicans of an election-year stunt intended to galvanize their voter base at a time when Bush and Republicans have been losing ground in public opinion polls because of the Iraq war, rising gasoline prices and other issues. A Washington Post-ABC News poll conducted May 11-15 showed that 56 percent of those surveyed said they favored Democrats to control Congress after the November election.
The Bush administration has been coordinating with Congress on social issues such as a same-sex marriage ban and pledging to fill judicial vacancies, seeking confrontations with Democrats. Bush said today he will meet June 5 with ``a coalition of community leaders, constitutional scholars, family and civic organizations, and religious leaders'' who support the amendment banning same-sex marriage.
More Important Matters
Democrats say lawmakers should deal with more important matters, such as the Iraq war, immigration overhaul, the Medicare drug program and wiretapping without court warrants. Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the Judiciary Committee's ranking Democrat, said the same-sex marriage ban is ``part of an election-year political agenda'' to satisfy the Republican Party's right wing.
``There is no imminent crisis,'' Leahy said May 18. ``We've always left this up to the states.''
Bush is concerned about recent court decisions in California, New York, Washington and Maryland that found within the state and U.S. constitutions a provision that permits same- sex marriage, said White House press secretary Tony Snow when asked at a news briefing why the president was talking about the topic.
``An amendment to the Constitution is necessary because activist courts have left our nation with no other choice,'' Bush said in his radio address. ``The constitutional amendment that the Senate will consider next week would fully protect marriage from being redefined, while leaving state legislatures free to make their own choices in defining legal arrangements other than marriage.''
To become part of the Constitution, the proposed amendment would have to pass the Senate and House of Representatives with at least a two-thirds majority and then be ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states.
June 3 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush, calling marriage the ``most enduring and important human institution,'' urged Congress to pass a constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage in the U.S.
``Ages of experience have taught us that the commitment of a husband and a wife to love and to serve one another promotes the welfare of children and the stability of society,'' Bush said in his weekly radio address. ``Government, by recognizing and protecting marriage, serves the interests of all.''
The Senate Judiciary Committee last month approved, along party lines, a proposed constitutional amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and woman. The Republican- controlled Senate might vote on the measure as soon as next week. It has little chance of passage because it would require a two- thirds majority, and Republicans have just 55 of the 100 seats.
Democrats accuse Republicans of an election-year stunt intended to galvanize their voter base at a time when Bush and Republicans have been losing ground in public opinion polls because of the Iraq war, rising gasoline prices and other issues. A Washington Post-ABC News poll conducted May 11-15 showed that 56 percent of those surveyed said they favored Democrats to control Congress after the November election.
The Bush administration has been coordinating with Congress on social issues such as a same-sex marriage ban and pledging to fill judicial vacancies, seeking confrontations with Democrats. Bush said today he will meet June 5 with ``a coalition of community leaders, constitutional scholars, family and civic organizations, and religious leaders'' who support the amendment banning same-sex marriage.
More Important Matters
Democrats say lawmakers should deal with more important matters, such as the Iraq war, immigration overhaul, the Medicare drug program and wiretapping without court warrants. Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the Judiciary Committee's ranking Democrat, said the same-sex marriage ban is ``part of an election-year political agenda'' to satisfy the Republican Party's right wing.
``There is no imminent crisis,'' Leahy said May 18. ``We've always left this up to the states.''
Bush is concerned about recent court decisions in California, New York, Washington and Maryland that found within the state and U.S. constitutions a provision that permits same- sex marriage, said White House press secretary Tony Snow when asked at a news briefing why the president was talking about the topic.
``An amendment to the Constitution is necessary because activist courts have left our nation with no other choice,'' Bush said in his radio address. ``The constitutional amendment that the Senate will consider next week would fully protect marriage from being redefined, while leaving state legislatures free to make their own choices in defining legal arrangements other than marriage.''
To become part of the Constitution, the proposed amendment would have to pass the Senate and House of Representatives with at least a two-thirds majority and then be ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states.
ACK!
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