It was inevitable. The moment former Republican National
Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman
announced his homosexuality publicly, a flurry of journalists
eagerly penned the obituary of the Republican Party’s stance on
traditional marriage. Again.
It’s happened multiple times since social conservatives
responded to activist judges in Massachusetts six years ago by
propelling George W. Bush to a second term. Democrats’ electoral
rampage in 2006 was a repudiation of the GOP’s anti-homosexual
marriage agenda, they said. Ditto 2008, when Barack Obama — who
could be called the first gay president, like Bill Clinton
was the first black president — coasted to victory.
But liberals’ celebration was tinged with angst. In 2006,
many of the candidates who gave Democrats the majority trended
conservative on the marriage issue. And in 2008, California might
have voted for Obama over John McCain by a landslide, but 52
percent of voters backed
a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between one man and
one woman. That wasn’t supposed to happen.
Now, in 2010, the frustration continues. Obama’s goal of
reversing the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on gays
serving openly has fallen on hard times. Complainers in the
netroots notwithstanding, Obama hasn’t changed his mind on gay
nuptials, either. He supports civil unions but not marriage
redefinition.
So, when your own guys aren’t helping much, what else to
do than falsely portray a seismic shift on the issue in your
opponent’s party? The Washington Post
informs us that older Americans and social conservatives are
evolving to support homosexual marriage. Read between the lines:
the issue is an albatross around the neck of a GOP trying to
refocus on economic issues.
Judging by the tenor of media coverage, you’d think
traditional marriage was a failing issue for the GOP. But it’s not.
To date, 30 states have adopted marriage amendments, including
several deep blue states. Those campaigns often have aided moderate
Republicans by turning out a base that otherwise would have stayed
home.
Can the GOP point to comparable victories on immigration,
tax policy, or gun rights? No. Yet marriage is fast becoming the
pariah to top party bosses. Blue-blooded country club Republicans
aren’t comfortable talking about God, morality, and tradition. Can
we get back to railing against illegal immigrants,
please?
That’s not to say political shifts aren’t happening.
During the past decade, public acceptance of same-sex marriage has
tilted slightly to the left, and polls show that young voters tend
to favor it.
But neither development is significant or shocking.
Polling shows a leftward tilt on several of the GOP’s pet issues.
It’s unfair to portray marriage as an outlier. And the fact that
young people are liberal, a systemic trait of young people, is
hardly a news flash.
Politics aside, the reasons for conservatives and
Republicans to continue standing for traditional marriage are
legion. Glenn Beck doesn’t get it when he claims
freedom-loving Americans have “bigger fish to fry” than traditional
marriage and abortion.
“You can argue about abortion or gay marriage or whatever
all you want, the country is burning down,” Beck said in early
August.
That sentiment fails to recognize the inseparable
connection between America’s social and economic ills — as if the
fiscal sphere were solely responsible for the decline of America.
It’s not. The fall of the traditional family has long been linked
to economic instability, the rise of the welfare state, and an
electorate that doesn’t understand, nor want to defend, freedom,
liberty, and tradition.
There’s also a marked distinction between the public issue
of same-sex marriage and the private issue of protecting the rights
of homosexuals as citizens. Americans should be protected under the
law regardless of sexual orientation. But that’s a far cry from
re-defining civil marriage to include relationships that nature
defines as untenable and God as immoral.
Economic concerns are, understandably, at the forefront of
voters’ minds this fall. But marriage continues to be a winning
issue with voters. If GOP bosses continue down the road that leads
to total abandonment of this principle, they’ll fast discover
unintended consequences at the ballot box.
