President Bush called for a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage on Tuesday, saying a growing trend toward same-sex weddings threatens “the most fundamental institution of civilization.”
Conservatives rallied around the move while Democrats and gay rights groups assailed it, setting the tone for what promises to be an emotionally charged election year faceoff pitting Bush and his Republican base against a vocal minority with mounting clout.
Bush weighed in on the divisive issue after weeks in which more than 3,000 gay couples have wed in San Francisco and as Massachusetts braces for a court-ordered May deadline for performing gay marriages.
In brief and sober remarks at the White House, Bush argued that the Constitution was the only tool left to keep “activist judges” and other officials from redefining marriage.
“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,” Bush said.
While calling on Congress to quickly pass a constitutional ban on gay marriage, Bush said states should be allowed to retain authority to define “legal arrangements other than marriage,” leaving the door open to civil unions for same-sex couples.
Gavin Newsom, 36, who became San Francisco’s Democratic mayor last month, said politics motivated Bush’s proposal.
“He has denied in turn 10 plus percent of Americans in this country, denied them the same rights and responsibilities and privileges that my wife and I are afforded,” Newsom said. “It is truly shameful, and it’s a low point in this administration.”
Bush’s backing was hailed by first-term Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-Colo.) chief sponsor of a House bill calling for a constitutional ban on gay marriage.
“Everyone knows children are optimally raised with, or thrive when they have, both a mom and a dad,” Musgrave said in a written statement.
“Now the American people want to be heard on the subject.”
Bush’s remarks drew immediate fire, however, from members of the gay community, an estimated 1 million of whom voted for him in 2000, and from Democrats on the presidential campaign trail.
“Writing discrimination into our Constitution violates conservative and Republican principles,” said Patrick Guerriero, executive director of Log Cabin Republicans, a pro-GOP group representing some 10,000 gay and lesbian members nationwide.
“Hundreds of loyal gay and lesbian Republicans and our allies serve in the Bush administration, work on his re-election campaign and work for GOP members of Congress,” Guerriero said in a statement. “We are firmly resolved to defeat this amendment.”
Kim Gandy, president of the National Organization for Women, compared the proposed amendment with Jim Crow-era laws prohibiting marriage between whites and blacks.
“Neither race nor sex are relevant to the right to marry,” Gandy, whose group represents a half-million women nationwide, said in a statement.
