Obama/McCain

August 23, 2008

I wanted to take this opportunity and comment, finally, on the Saddleback Civil Forum on the Presidency - hosted by Rick Warren. What has come to interest me most about the forum are the points of agreement between McCain and Obama on several issues. I will focus on one.

Warren: DEFINE MARRIAGE.

Obama: I BELIEVE THAT MARRIAGE IS THE UNION BETWEEN A MAN AND A WOMAN. NOW FOR ME AS A CHRISTIAN…IT’S ALSO A SACRED UNION. GOD’S IN THE MIX.

Warren: WOULD YOU SUPPORT A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT WITH THAT DEFINITION?

Obama: NO, I WOULD NOT. BECAUSE HISTORICALLY…WE HAVE NOT DEFINED MARRIAGE IN OUR CONSTITUTION. IT’S BEEN A MATTER OF STATE LAW THAT HAS BEEN OUR TRADITION. LET’S BREAK IT DOWN. THE REASON THAT PEOPLE THINK THERE NEEDS TO BE A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT…IS BECAUSE OF THE CONCERN ABOUT SAME SEX MARRIAGE. I AM NOT SOMEBODY WHO PROMOTES SAME SEX MARRIAGE BUT I DO BELIEVE IN CIVIL UNIONS. I DO BELIEVE THAT…FOR GAY PARTNERS TO WANT TO VISIT EACH OTHER IN THE HOSPITAL FOR THE STATE TO SAY, YOU KNOW, THAT’S ALL RIGHT, I DON’T THINK IN ANY WAY INHIBITS MY CORE BELIEFS ABOUT WHAT MARRIAGE ARE. I THINK MY FAITH IS STRONG ENOUGH AND MY MARRIAGE IS STRONG ENOUGH THAT I CAN AFFORD THOSE CIVIL RIGHTS TO OTHERS EVEN IF I HAVE A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE OR A DIFFERENT VIEW.

McCain: A UNION BETWEEN MAN AND WOMAN, BETWEEN ONE MAN AND ONE WOMAN, THAT’S MY DEFINITION OF MARRIAGE….WE HAVE TO RECOGNIZE THE UNIQUE STATUS OF MARRIAGE BETWEEN MAN AND WOMAN…THAT DOESN’T MEAN THAT PEOPLE CAN’T ENTER INTO LEGAL AGREEMENTS, THAT DOESN’T MEAN THAT THEY DON’T HAVE THE RIGHTS OF ALL CITIZENS. I’M NOT SAYING THAT. I AM SAYING THAT WE SHOULD PRESERVE THE UNIQUE STATUS OF MARRIAGE BETWEEN ONE MAN AND ONE WOMAN AND IF A FEDERAL COURT — IF A FEDERAL COURT DECIDED THAT MY STATE OF ARIZONA HAD TO OBSERVE WHAT THE STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS DECIDED, THEN I WOULD FAVOR A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. UNTIL THEN, I BELIEVE THE STATE SHOULD MAKE THE DECISIONS WITHIN THEIR OWN STATES.

We have been saying here on Messages that Obama is much better than McCain on gay issues; I am not sure that can be maintained to the degree we had hoped. Obama and McCain seem quite aligned on this gay issue…Both fail to speak about real gay lives; they both make a distinction between marriage and unions/legal arrangements; they both oppose an amendment so long as states are allowed to decide what’s what. This is a really disappointing and disturbing similarity. And I agree with Bill Maher (on politics…his religious stuff, ugh.):

Posted by Tony Posted in Bi/Partisan Politics, Current Events, Posts by Tony