Posted on 02/05/2004 6:07:07 PM PST by Pikamax
Gay Marriage Ruling Could Be Problem for Kerry Thu February 05, 2004 01:04 PM ET
By Alan Elsner WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A legal ruling compelling Massachusetts to allow same-sex marriages may prove troublesome for Sen. John Kerry, if he becomes the Democratic candidate to oppose President Bush in the November U.S. election.
Political analysts said Wednesday's decision by Massachusetts' Supreme Judicial Court would be ammunition for Republican strategists planning to portray Kerry, the Democratic front-runner, as "another Massachusetts liberal."
The fact that the Democratic convention this summer is scheduled to take place in Boston may help their case, playing on the stereotype of Kerry's home state as a liberal paradise outside the more conservative American mainstream.
"This election is shaping up to be a photo finish. Every issue like this could make a difference on the margins," said Republican political consultant Scott Reed.
"There are huge chunks of the country in the south and west that think this kind of decision is crazy and that Massachusetts must be crazy to produce it," he said.
Kerry himself has said he supports equal civil rights for homosexuals and their right to contract civil unions but opposes full-fledged same-sex marriage.
"I oppose gay marriage and disagree with the Massachusetts court's decision," he said.
In the 1988 presidential campaign, George Bush, father of the current president, destroyed his Democratic opponent, then-Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis, by portraying him as a weak, New England liberal out of touch with most of America.
"The fact that this decision came down from Massachusetts is a gift for the Bush campaign. It makes it easier for them to try to paint Kerry as from Massachusetts and therefore too liberal and therefore out of touch," said Vanderbilt University political scientist John Geer.
Against this, Kerry's only defense will be to be, "very strong, very tough. He simply cannot allow the other side to frame him like this," said Boston Democratic political consultant Michael Goldman.
MAJORITY OPPOSE
A Washington Post/ABC survey last month found only 41 percent of Americans in favor of same-sex marriage and 55 percent against. When it came to civil unions, the figures were 46 percent in favor and 51 percent opposed.
But the issue may stir more passion among opponents.
"Kerry's position is not unreasonable but this is a good issue for Republicans to mobilize and energize their political base," said Duke University political scientist John Aldrich.
Conservatives have already delved through Kerry's record and found he voted against the Defense of Marriage Act that passed the Senate by 85-14 in 1996 and was signed by then-President Bill Clinton.
The act denied federal recognition of same-sex marriages and gave states the right to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages licensed in other states.
Opponents of same-sex marriage are now pressing for a constitutional amendment declaring that marriage is a state reserved for one man and one woman.
Bush has never quite committed himself to supporting such an amendment but White House officials said he was actively considering throwing his full support behind the idea in light of the Massachusetts decision.
Gary Bauer, a former Republican presidential candidate and leading Christian conservative, said Kerry faced an unenviable dilemma. He could not go further than he has against same-sex marriages without alienating his own political base.
"Politicians hate getting themselves into cultural wars but what Massachusetts has done guarantees that cultural issues will play a prominent part in the campaign," he said.
Imagine the nerve of them nasty ole conservatives delving through poor ole John's voting record.
For shame!
Phew! I read the title and thought there was something about Theresa we didn't know.
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