Thompson: States Should Have The Freedom To Institute Gay Marriage

Former Senator Fred Thompson (R) is campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination as the "authentic conservative." He was widely hailed as the savior of the GOP field, which had been dominated by Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney, both of whom were elected to office in very liberal states, New York and Massachusetts, respectively. However, he has disappointed the GOP's conservative base with a lethargic campaign riddled with missteps. His appearance today on NBC's Meet the Press, with Tim Russert, will do nothing to assuage their concerns. Thompson made clear that while he personally opposed gay marriage, if a state's legislature and governor made it legal he would respect that state's decision. Thompson also condemned the federal government's intervention into the Terry Schiavo case, an intervention that social conservatives strongly supported.

Watch the video of Thompson on NBC's Meet the Press below:

Comments

[AKJM]

You know, I don't care who my neighbor is sleeping with; I just don't want to see the body parts or hear the frivolity.
But I tire of Gays raising their proclivities to the level of war and peace, health care, education, jobs, environment ....after all they are just messing about.
There are plenty of gay lawyers, they can get all the documentation wished.

[unclebucky]

Well.

That's the end of grampa for the evangelical thumpers.

But actually, WHO institutes equal marriage anyway? The people who marry each other.

A state provides a piece of paper that allows the couple to have the benefits that all other married couples get to have. Hah, including arguments and divorce.

Ugh.

--UB.

[helonias]

IS this a tail between the legs thingee?

[timetorevolt]

I listened to him on MTP..He sounds as moronic as Bush. Which means he has damn good chance of geeting the votes of morons who thinks Bush walks on water. The bible toting nuts doesn't realize soon they're going to need someone to turn bread into fish because Bush has delivered most of this country's wealth to his cronies.

[smartstuart]

Another "States Rights" southern bigot!! Wasn't the Civil War fought over this as well as slavery??? And...didn't the South LOSE????

[Charlio]

Check out our trailer on Gay Marriage. Produced to
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[Bacowall]

What a disappointment to the GOP. This guy is the pits. If there was false start, this is it-- classic!

[Advocate123]

Federalism (State's Rights) is a conservative value. You people don't seem to understand that.

The issue is this: If one state recognizes gay marriage, do the neighboring state have to? I would say no.

Moreover, it is not for judges to decide, it is for the people of each state.

Therefore, people can vote with their feet.

Advocate123
http://copiousdissent.blogspot.com

[clumberfeet]

When were States denied by the Federal Government to establish their own marriage laws?
Deep voice, authoritative look, Constitutional law scholar?
Well two out of three ain't bad.

[robotfog]

Maybe he got tired of outright lying for the stone cold conservatives and decided to present as a regular human.

By the way, I heard somewhere that there is a movement among the human part of the conservative movement that is willing to actually stress humanity over grouchy hatefulness. It will be decades before these people ever get a podium anywhere.

[LittleGreenGreaseBalls]

That tears it! Thompson might just as well go home. The only thing that will rile the Repub base more than raising taxes is treating everyone else fair. Not in America, land of minority persecution for two hundred years!

[dannyo152]

The headline is deceptive. While Thompson wants to let states have rights to legislate in this matter, he does want to prevent courts from addressing the issue. I think this is a cynical way to punt the issue. Russert failed to ask what this application of states' rights to a civil institution (which marriage is -- the state licenses and regulates marriage) would mean in the context of Jim Crow laws, women's rights, voter-approved medical marijuana, voters' rights, right-to-die, and partial-birth abortion.

Russert asked if Thompson could support the language in the '04 Republican platform referencing abortion. Thompson said no, which was forthright enough, but Russert missed the follow-up question: will there be a convention fight regarding the platform if Thompson is still in a position to be a nominee next summer. Well, the inability to ask the really tough questions, that's on Russert.

What's on Senator Thompson is the way so many answers were provided with an outline of choosing between A and B and no indication as to what values he would use to navigate among bad choices. The answer about his campaign official with a sordid past was a perfect example. While Thompson wants to believe debts to society can be paid and forgiven, the possibility of reformation, the values of friendship and loyalty, on the other hand, he's running for President. To me that suggests that, for him, personal ambition could trump ethics and morals. What a tower of Jell-O.

[souris]

...........oops, Grandpa Fred, saw this morning with Timmie on MTP, and I think between what you said about Gay marriage, and your "good friend" [who works on your campaign] with a drug arrest in his background, you just lost the religious reich vote....

[pascaljim]

Well, Fred, get to work and set the example with Tennessee leading the charge, then we will all know you will follow the Equal Rights for All Campaign........lol

[Blutus]

This guy has been on TV too long.

Does he not know what party
he is affiliated with??

Has he not been paying attention?

When he announced, I thought he was it,
a compromise candidate that the trailer-park
mullet-heads could vote for.

But he has no chance at all.