Huckabee: Romney responsible for implementing gay marriage in Massachusetts

Partial transcript from exclusive video interview with CNSNews.com:



Huckabee: … You know, it’s interesting, the California decision as well as the Massachusetts decision, I don’t think should ever have been implemented by the governors, Schwarzenegger and Romney. They were both decisions that the governors simply could have said the court has said that we have to do it, but let them enforce it. Because those were administrative decisions that had to put that in place and there was no mandate.

Jeffrey: Right, but Governor Romney actually went ahead and certified same-sex marriages without an act of his state legislature.

Huckabee: It should never have happened. It should never have happened. And while we want to blame the courts—

Jeffrey: Does that disqualify him as a vice presidential nominee for the Republican Party?

Huckabee: Well, you know, I’ve not probably been an advocate for him in that position. And, you know, I am going to let him defend himself. And I don’t want to relive the primary. But I think that that was a very unfortunate position that he took in saying that, “Well, I can’t do anything about it.” Oh, yes you can.

Jeffrey: You hold him responsible for the same-sex marriages in Massachusetts?

Huckabee: Not singularly. I hold him responsible for implementing—

Jeffrey: He could have stopped it?

Huckabee: He could have stopped it, and should have stopped it.

Jeffrey: And if you were governor of Massachusetts you would not have gone ahead and—

Huckabee: I would not have done that.

Jeffrey: You would not have had the clerks and justices of the peace — Certify those marriages?

Huckabee: Absolutely not.

From CNSNews.com:

“I would not have done that,” said Huckabee, who taped an appearance on CNSNews.com’s “Online with Terry Jeffrey” on August 15.

In a 4-3 decision issued on Nov. 18, 2003, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry in Massachusetts. The court gave the state legislature until May 17, 2004 to enact legislation to allow such marriages to take place.

In the intervening time, the Massachusetts legislature did not enact a law codifying same-sex marriages. Before the May 17, 2004 deadline, however, then-Gov. Romney directed that the words “bride” and “groom” on Massachusetts marriage applications be changed to “Party A” and “Party B.

Romney’s chief legal counsel, Daniel Winslow, told justices of the peace in Massachusetts that they should carry out the decision of the court and perform same-sex marriages or resign.

"My message was: 'You took an oath, and you don't have to agree or disagree with the law, you took an oath to uphold the law. Your only job is to follow the law,’” Winslow told Pete Winn of CNSNews.com in January. “We'll leave it to the courts to litigate what the law is, but once the courts have ruled, if you've taken an oath under the constitution, you have to follow your oath.”

Welcome to the ProtectMarriage.com coalition.

So much for the Mormon-Evangelical interfaith dialogue. It was fun while it lasted, wasn't it?

With friends like these ...

x-posted here:

Huckabee: Romney responsible for implementing gay marriage in Massachusetts

Huckabee: Romney responsible for implementing gay marriage in Massachusetts

Huckabee: Romney responsible for implementing gay marriage in Massachusetts

Huckabee: Romney responsible for implementing gay marriage in Massachusetts


Huckabee: Romney responsible for implementing gay marriage in Massachusetts

Huckabee: Romney responsible for implementing gay marriage in Massachusetts


I wish that more rank and file members of the LDS church would realize: the anti-gay coalition they've joined in California is one that includes folks who - given the chance - would vote the LDS church out of existence. Folks like Mike Huckabee.

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4 comments:

Ted said...

Despite the Dems and the allied main stream media’s desperation to see Romney as McCain’s Veep, Mitt is clearly out, with (1) Obama doubling down on the class warfare theme (McCain’s 7 houses) and (2) McCain doubling down with ads showing the hypocrisy of Biden attacking Obama in the primaries — Romney did way more than that contra McCain.

This leaves only Govs Sarah Palin and Tim Pawlenty. Pro-abortion Ridge and Dem-Lieberman were never real considerations, despite relentless media goading. Pawlenty’s lackluster TV performances, coupled with Palin pizzazz, the primacy of oil drilling and the ticked off women/Hillary voters, does now portend a McCain/Palin checkmate on the Dems. This is so albeit the Dems and liberal media dare not mention Palin’s name, that is, everyone but…..

And if there’s any question as to Palin being uniquely positioned and able to more than nullify Biden in debate, see the excellent discussion at palinforvp.blogspot.com

Team McCain, well done!!!

Chino Blanco said...

Strangely enough, Ted, I think I've already read this comment of yours - somewhere, elsewhere - but thanks anyway for your highly original contribution to the discussion.

terrierchica said...

Man, I wrote out a long reply and then my internet went out. I've got to get reliable wireless...

Okay, so as a Masshole myself, I'll tell you this: Huckabee's got to be the only person that's dumb enough to think Romney was on the pro-gay marriage side of this. He wasn't at ALL. Yes, the application for a marriage license was changed, but there were also some women's rights groups arguing at the same time that "wife" should be second and thus subordinant to the husband. Anyway, Romney sucked. I still can't figure out how he was elected governor. He spent 300 days of his last year in office OUT OF THE STATE, already forgetting MA to chase the presidency. When he was in town, he'd march around Boston Common with religious right picketers protesting gay marriage. I really think Huckabee's comments on this were more ridiculous than even he usually is.

Kym Mele-COMM SPCLST said...

Huckabee is jealous of Romney...pure and simple....not too Christian of him to bear false witness...ya think? Here's the rest of the story:

Evangelicals for Mitt: MITT ROMNEY "CHOSE" GAY MARRIAGE?
http://www.evangelicalsformitt.org/front_page/mitt_romney_chose_gay_marriage.php

(excerpt)
Frankly, it is sad that so many could be misled by something so simple--and simply wrong. When the Governor confronted the Massachusetts Supreme Court, he had two choices: (1) He could fight the decision using legal means; or (2) he could risk contempt citations and impeachment in an ineffectual, grandstanding attempt to block same-sex marriages. Rather than becoming the what the media would undoubtedly call the "George Wallace of gay marriage" and hand homosexual activists a propaganda victory to go along with their court victory, Governor Romney fought using the law and using his enormous gifts of persuasion. As a result, the same-sex marriage movement has lost public momentum, has lost court cases, and has lost at the ballot box. And we have Governor Romney and his principled, courageous, and compassionate defense of traditional marriage to thank for much of that success.

Mitt Romney did not "choose" gay marriage. At a critical moment in our nation's history, Mitt Romney did make a choice, and he chose to defend marriage in a way that can and should make all conservatives proud.

P.S. If you doubt my qualifications to read a court case, please read my bio.
http://www.evangelicalsformitt.org/dfrench.php

Posted by David French on January 2, 2007 02:23 PM

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