06.04.06
Bush urges Congress to ban gay marriages
President George W. Bush will on Monday meet conservative activists at the White House to underline his support for a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, re-inforcing the message of a weekend speech in which he urged Congress to pass the amendment.
His intervention comes as the Senate begins a debate on Monday on an amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
The revival of the issue marks the most visible contours of the electoral strategy being crafted by Karl Rove, the president’s chief political strategist who has been charged with focusing on the mid-term elections. In an effort to rally disaffected Republican conservatives – whose support for Mr Bush has slipped. - he is turning again to the divisive issues of gay marriage and judicial nominations.
In his radio address on Saturday, Mr Bush combined both themes. He defended marriage as “the most enduring and important human institution” that should not be “cut off from its cultural, religious and natural roots without weakening this good influence on society”.
The speech also included a direct assault on the courts, using the phrase “activist judges” or “activist courts” three times. Mr Bush, who is poised to nominate a new wave of conservative judges, said an amendment was needed “because activist courts have left our nation with no other choice”.
The supreme court of Washington state is expected to rule soon on whether to overturn two lower court rulings in favour of same-sex marriage, “marking the first state high court to tackle same-sex marriage since Massachusetts’ highest court issued its ruling legalising gay unions in November 2003”, says Kavan Peterson of Stateline.