He said he’d known for some time, and that his sexual orientation wasn’t something he chose; it was simply a part of who he is. Jane and I were proud of him for his honesty and courage. We were surprised to learn he is gay but knew he was still the same person he’d always been. The only difference was that now we had a more complete picture of the son we love.

At the time, my position on marriage for same-sex couples was rooted in my faith tradition that marriage is a sacred bond between a man and a woman. Knowing that my son is gay prompted me to consider the issue from another perspective: that of a dad who wants all three of his kids to lead happy, meaningful lives with the people they love, a blessing Jane and I have shared for 26 years.

"all of our sons and daughters ought to have the same opportunity to experience the joy and stability of marriage"

"it came down to the Bible’s overarching themes of love and compassion and my belief that we are all children of God."

Rob Portman (R).

_______________________________________________________________

As if we needed any more confirmation that an unfortunately common view amongst the modern conservative is "F everyone but me and my own."

 

Once one of his own has condition X, then X is no longer an evil immoral grandma-killing Chtulu-summoning pile of degeneracy....it's suddenly all good and fine.

 

_______________________________________________________________

Doh. Turns out he's FOS and just wants to save face with his son:

The process of citizens persuading fellow citizens is how consensus is built and enduring change is forged. That’s why I believe change should come about through the democratic process in the states. Judicial intervention from Washington would circumvent that process as it’s moving in the direction of recognizing marriage for same-sex couples. An expansive court ruling would run the risk of deepening divisions rather than resolving them.

Rob Portman (R).

Way to take a position without putting your money where your mouth is. If he meant what he said, he'd be pushing to repeal DOMA and he'd sign on to the Supreme Court amicus brief. Instead, he hides behind "states rights." Which we know is a lie because with DOMA in place, states CAN'T truly decide for themselves.

Yea, the dems record is just stellar on gay marriage other than writing the ban.

"As if we needed any more confirmation that an unfortunately common view amongst the modern conservative is "F everyone but me and my own."

As if we needed any more confirmation that modern liberals are full of blind rage and hate toward those with a different view...

"If he meant what he said, he'd be pushing to repeal DOMA and he'd sign on to the Supreme Court amicus brief. Instead, he hides behind "states rights." Which we know is a lie because with DOMA in place, states CAN'T truly decide for themselves. "

It isnt enough a Republican politician changes his mind; he must support gay marriage by Supreme Court decision, else he is a despicable soulless person who must be shunned by all society. Got it, Mr Fanatic.

Obama has changed positions on gay marriage more than he changes his underwear.
More contorted positions than yoga:
no, yes, no, states decision, not states decision, DOMA yes, DOMA no....

In response to GreginMeffa's comment:

Which point in my post - in particular, that is - was supposed to be undermind by your reference to how DOMA got passed almost twenty years ago?

 

It's cool that a social conservative made a fake show of changing his mind on gay marriage only because he found out that one of his own is gay....

....because Democrats are not allowed to change their minds over 20 years?

 

 

 

Or was this just one of those reflexive things you throw out that look like they're supposed to be zingers, but aren't zingers, and whose relevance to the point you are contesting is never explained....?

Like a bald mention of "Byrd" whenever an R appears to do something racist?

 

 

In response to GreginMeffa's comment:

By any other standard, it IS stellar.

Dig it.

 

In response to ComingLiberalCrackup's comment:

Sorry. The "tolerance" box you try to trap "liberals" in does not require anyone to tolerate your hatred and discrimination based on sexual orientation.

 

 

In response to ComingLiberalCrackup's comment:

Not really true.  But funny how that translated to a huge margin of votes for him on election day, eh?

Did Romney include "them gays" as part of the 47% who just wanted 'gifts'?

Go ahead and let it out.  It must sukkk really bad to be on the wrong side of history.  Again.

 

In response to ComingLiberalCrackup's comment:

How do we know he actually changed his mind?

 

Oh right.

R says something: Accept it on face value.

D says something: Conspiracy! Death Panels! Pals around with terrorists!

In response to GreginMeffa's comment:

Stellar?  No.  But much, much better than the Republicans who lead the opposition to this right.  And yet you ignore the inherent bigotry of your chosen party and talk about the dems... again and again.  Look to you own house.  It ain't pretty.

In response to ComingLiberalCrackup's comment:

Bigotry is not just a "different view".

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In response to FortySixAndTwo's comment:

I'm not going to defend a paticular number of uses of "much", but, look at who lead the charge against DADT and 10 USC 654(b). Look at the number of votes from each party.

Sure, some Rs got behind it, but it was Ds leading the way and Ds outnumbered them in taking those provisions down.

 

 

Ds are leading the way against DOMA. Did they pass it? Yes. Did Republicans complain? No.

Neither party may be glowing examples of proper action, but it's foolish (and dishonest) to deny that Dems are, in fact, better overall on the question.

 

This post has been removed.

In response to FortySixAndTwo's comment:

Much, much less.

In response to FortySixAndTwo's comment:

Being late to the party is one thing.

Urinating in the punch bowl and telling people to drink it is a whole different story.

When will GOPers - esp. 'social conservatives' learn to just leave these people alone, already...?

 

In response to FortySixAndTwo's comment:

A low bar, it's true...but a bar nonetheless.

 

I believe you at your word that you don't oppose equal marriage, but the dissonance from the right on this issue is positively deafening.  Portman was shortlisted for both top two spots just last year.

 

This post has been removed.

Portman's just the latest in a long list of "conservatives" that never see the havoc their policies inflict on people's lives until it affects them personally, and sometimes not even then.

It would have been nice if Sen. Portman could have figured this one out with some empathy, but that never happens with the GOP.

Some of the individual reactions at CPAC to Portman's announcement (remember, he was presidential material recently, or so we were told by his gop admirers):

 

“Horrible!” said Tony Mele, an 88-year-old woman from New Jersey, of Portman’s decision. When told he did so because of his gay son, she responded, “That’s his fault! He gets no sympathy from me.”

A pastor from Georgia, William Temple, told Portman to “quit being so selfish as to only think about his son,” and if he won’t reverse himself, “to step down and go home.”

Another pastor, Rev. Robert Lancia, dismissed Portman’s point that we should treat each other according to the Golden Rule: “That doesn’t cover it.”

One man, David Kern, even said Portman’s son’s choice of college turned him gay. “Well what did Sen. Portman expect when he sent his son to Yale?”

 

Yup...them small-tent conservatives ain't be no compassionates no more....

 

 "Let's not be naïve, we're not talking about a simple political battle; it is a destructive pretension against the plan of God. We are not talking about a mere bill, but rather a machination of the Father of Lies (i.e, The Devil) that seeks to confuse and deceive the children of God."

-Pope Francis, on the subject of Argentina's 2010 gay marriage bill.

In response to Reubenhop's comment:

Ah yes, WRITING it, and then doing absolutely nothing about, is firm ground.  MUCH better, no reallly