Posted on 12/11/2012 9:48:27 AM PST by SeekAndFind
Conservative firebrand Glenn Beck has joined a growing chorus of Republican commentators in defending gay marriage, laying out a strong case for ending government opposition to letting same-sex couples wed.
"Let me take the pro-gay marriage people and the religious people — I believe that there is a connecting dot there that nobody is looking at, and that's the Constitution," Beck said during a recent segment of his online talk show. "The question is not whether gay people should be married or not. The question is why is the government involved in our marriage?"
While Beck's defense of gay marriage may seem surprising, given his far-right political views and audience, it is actually not new. Earlier this year, Beck said that he has the "same opinion on gay marriage as President Barack Obama" and does not see same-sex unions as a "threat to America."
Still, Beck's public renewal of his support for gay marriage comes at a politically significant moment for the GOP, which is working to reshape its message to appeal to a changing electorate. A Gallup survey released last week found that 53 percent of Americans are in favor of legalizing gay marriage, a number that has been steadily growing for the past decade.
Moreover, by couching his support for gay marriage in a libertarian framework, Beck makes the case for the right to look past differences on social issues in order to broaden their coalition to include all limited government conservatives.
"What we need to do, I think, as people who believe in the Constitution, is to start looking for allies who believe in the Constitution and expand our own horizon," Beck said. "We would have the ultimate big tent."
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
Not defending Beck here at all. In fact the article is not truly representative of what he said anyway.
Beck’s point is just one simple point.
Why is the government involved in marriage AT ALL? He is absolutely right about this.
Beck was not a supporter of Romney during the primaries at all Jim. Beck got behind Romney for one reason - at least he isn’t a communist.
If you don’t listen to Beck regularly don’t claim you know where he stands.
If you really beleive this wasn't just a ruse you are wrong.
We have points we can agree on. The federal government should not be involved in the marriage issue at all. But it IS the feds who are ultimately pushing this homosexual agenda crap down our throats and so we must resist it at the federal level.
We therefore fully support the pro-life, pro-family, pro-gun, pro-religious and economic freedom planks in the GOP platform and we demand that our representatives and our candidates defend them to the hilt!! We reject those who cannot or will not.
Excellent point, and those black-robed activists won't spend more than a second finding a rationale for striking down any state-level rejection of abortion, homosexuality, etc.
Isn't that what happened with the Fed appeals court and California's rejection of gay marriage?
That was a "state-level" initiative, and what did it get them?
bupkis
The judges, as Roberts proved, will twist logic into new-age pretzels to go the direction they want to go.
I personally listened to Beck go through the list of candidates during the primaries and reject each and every one... until he got to Romney. Romney was the only Republican candidate who in his eyes was a qualified candidate for the presidency. Have no idea why, because Romney was definitely not a conservative. Never has been, never will be.
Beck was deeply behind Bachman and he liked Perry and then Santorum.
It was no ruse. Beck was one of the very first to call Romney a progressive (using his own words in MA).
I'm glad you posted that, because I didn't hear it. Good info to know.
Jim this DOJ won’t support any law we are lucky to get passed anyway and it isn’t going to change for many years.
Our only option is to drive this agenda one state at a time.
The federal government will ultimately collapse and those states that are clearly standing with the federal government will go down with them.
The GOP is now the WHIG party and they will NEVER recover from this. Mark my word by the next election there will be a third party that true conservatives will flock to including those already in office and even a couple from the DEM party.
Think about it...100 years the GOP has produced only 2 decent presidents. Calvin Coolidge and Ronald Reagan.
Well, I and FR will not stop defending life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness (economic freedom) come hell or high water so you can forget about that nonsense.
Those who push abortion or the homosexual agenda on FR will continue receiving the zot from me.
You don’t get it. Our representatives (therefore our candidates) must defend the founding principles to the hilt!! How else will we ever get pro-life, pro-liberty, pro-constitution officials appointed and confirmed to the judiciary and high government offices?
Beck is a useful idiot (look it up) if he caves-in to this Marxist drivel.
Jim I listened nearly every single day during the primary. He was never a Romney supporter.
He supported Bachman first - had very long interviews with her, then he support Rick Perry a little...after Bachman and Perry folded he was 100% behind Rick Santorum.
All of them were frequent guests on his show and HE NEVER HAD ROMNEY on his show.
And Jim exactly what representatives from California are you referring to?
What candidates in Congress?
Oh you mean the ones that Boehner stripped out of their committee chairs?
Come on, get real there are NO voices in the GOP that are going to be heard now discussing anything that would resemble a conservative idea.
Watch Jim DeMint will be 1000 times more effective now that he has left the Congress.
Our representatives do NOT represent us.
I think you owe everyone on this thread a deep felt apology. I think you need to reconsider your godless libertarian philosophy and consider that godless libertarianism leads to rampant un-checked civil hedonism, which eventually destroys all civilizations.
Well said, Marlowe!
If you will notice, subsequent posts by surfer apologize for and defend Beck.
Surfer:
Beck was not a supporter of Romney during the primaries at all Jim. Beck got behind Romney for one reason - at least he isn’t a communist.
If you don’t listen to Beck regularly don’t claim you know where he stands.
My question is, what do surfer, Romney and Beck have in common?
Well, after I get home later this afternoon, I’ll see if I can find a reference to it. He most definitely did eliminate all candidates but Romney. I think it was an interview on FOX news. Could’ve been Hannity or O’Really.
You will not improve the lot by stripping the pro-life, pro-family planks.
It was well after the primary Jim. During the primary he fought very hard for Bachman, and Santorum mainly.
He exposed Gingrich and Romney as the progressives that they are.
The reference to 1930’s Germany was two-fold.
1) The people were begging the government to come down and support their ideas as laws.
2) The Nazi’s specifically labeled gays, jews, etc as diseases and that is the responsibility of the government to defend against those diseases.
That is the EXACT argument xzins used to support his case against gay marriage, that gays are a disease and they need to be outlawed.
Does anyone think that is what we should be doing here?
Selecting a group we don’t agree with and making them criminals? You could make the case against ISLAM because they state they want to kill us.
Categorizing any human as a disease is sickening.
Just had to slam Newt, didn't ya? This tactic is SOOO familiar!
Slam Bush, slam Newt...building up those straw men in a hurry.
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