Deserters! Republicans jump ship on the issue of marriage [Video]

30 Jun, 2015 by Terresa Monroe-Hamilton

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So very few are standing for constitutional principles in the end – even on the conservative side. At this point, I would roundly support Ted Cruz, Scott Walker or Bobby Jindal. They seem to be the only ones with the courage of their convictions and who are willing to stand up and defend not just traditional marriage, but freedom of speech and religion. They are also standing for State’s rights and I don’t mean the ‘federal’ State – I don’t play word games the way Justice Roberts is so fond of doing. This should have been a straight up State’s issue and the Supreme Court has no business legislating from the bench, using the 14th Amendment to bludgeon the 10th and destroy the 1st. You are seeing those who are true conservative Republicans rise and those who jumped ship the minute things rocked even a little bit. Cowards.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas

From WND:

A survey of public statements shows only three of 15 Republican presidential prospects are on record supporting a constitutional amendment either defining marriage as between a man and a woman, or one that would let states decide the legality of same-sex marriages.

A fourth tells WND he is leaning that way.

Those supporting such an amendment are:

Ted Cruz

Scott Walker

Bobby Jindal

Mike Huckabee

Those opposed are:

Jeb Bush

Marco Rubio

Ben Carson

Lindsey Graham

Rick Perry

Chris Christie

Rick Santorum

Carly Fiorina

George Pataki

Those whose positions are unclear are:

Rand Paul

Donald Trump

Mainstream Republicans, including some who consider themselves conservative, seem to want the issue to disappear. But a few die-hard conservatives appear to be developing a two-pronged response to the Supreme Court’s legalization of same-sex marriage, one that stages a defense and another that goes on offense.

The defense is the First Amendment Defense Act that would preserve tax-exemptions, grants and the like for religious institutions, such as churches and religiously affiliated schools, that define marriage as between a man and a woman. It was recently introduced in the Senate by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and in the House by Rep. Raul Labrador, R-Idaho.

The maneuver on offense would be a constitutional amendment on marriage, but it has what may be surprisingly few supporters, even among conservatives.

[…]

Cruz’s “State Marriage Defense Act of 2015″ has 14 co-sponsors in the Senate, including Lee, but not including presidential candidates Paul and Rubio.

The summary of the bill says it:

“Prohibits, for purposes of determining the meaning of any Act of Congress or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of U.S. administrative bureaus and agencies as applied with respect to individuals domiciled in a state or in any other territory or possession of the United States: (1) the term ‘marriage’ from including any relationship that the state, territory, or possession does not recognize as a marriage; and (2) the term ‘spouse’ from including an individual who is a party to a relationship that is not recognized as a marriage by that state, territory, or possession.”

[…]

Lee told WND his legislation is meant to guarantee religious liberties.

On Monday, he wrote that his “First Amendment Defense Act” would “would prevent any agency from denying a federal tax exemption, grant, contract, accreditation, license, or certification to an individual or institution for acting on their religious belief that marriage is a union between one man and one woman.”

It has 21 co-sponsors in the Senate, including Cruz and Rubio.

The House version, introduced by Labrador, has 69 co-sponsors.

Not only does Cruz support an amendment, he proposed one. Cruz and Lee introduced the State Marriage Defense Act in February. It would allow states to adopt their own definitions of marriage, blocking the federal government from applying one definition across the country. Mike Lee and Raul Labrador are to be commended here for standing as well. Lee rightly points out that unless stopped, this will now lead to religious persecution on a scale the US has never seen before. Tax exemptions for churches will be stripped… jobs will be lost… churches and schools will close… children will be removed from homes… schools will teach federally mandated perversion… and so it goes. We have one more chance to get this right and put the nation back on track to greatness – we must support those taking a principled stand.