Gay marriage issue powerful, poll finds

[question everything]

WASHINGTON – Gay marriage is a more powerful social issue for voters than either abortion or gun control, a new poll suggests.

Four in 10 voters say they would not vote for a candidate who disagrees with them on gay marriage, according to a poll released yesterday by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.

Only a third in the poll, 34 percent, felt they would not vote for a candidate who disagrees with them on abortion and 32 percent felt that way about a candidate who disagrees with them on gun control.

People opposed gay marriage by more than a 2-1 margin, but when asked whether they consider a constitutional amendment to ban it a top priority, they placed it 21st in a list of 22 possible choices.

The poll taken Feb. 11-16 has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percent.

Associated Press


Find this article at:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20040228/news_1n28nation.html

[emanymton]

1. It Is Equal Rights! Keep Focussed On Equal Rights

[private_ryan]

2. would JFK or LBJ have won if they ran on Equal rights in the 60's?

use the same analogy.

[Zhade]

6. Yeah, what's the point of upholding the Constitution if you can't win?

Exactly what the Republicans practiced in 2000, I might add.

[Merlin]

8. That's exactly right. We must never forget it. Losers can do nothing.

You can't do a damn thing about your beliefs if you wind up losing. Far better to soft-petal those points which are unpopular--no matter how just--and win, than emphasize them and lose.

[Voltaire99]

10. Sometimes, "winners' end up being losers

What profiteth a party if it sells itself short on the most pressing issues of the age?

This should be clear already from the past twenty-five years of Democratic Party decline, but if a recent refresher is needed, see "Iraq, war" and "taxes, cuts for the wealthy." And have a glimpse at the Patriot Act, for chrissake. Then come back and tell me more about the wisdom of soft-peddling.

[Zhade]

11. Aw, come on - principles are for losers!

Get with the winning team, kid! After all, look at all the success the Democratic party has had selling out its basic principles!

Wait a minute...

[emanymton]

12. Set The Agenda As Equal Rights ...

you lead the discussion and your position is strong. Let the GOP set the agenda as "special rights for minority" and you lose!

[keopeli]

3. Bush* announcement was on Tues, Feb. 24. This poll is old news

With Bush*, things can change overnight because he opens his mouth. I'll wait for later polls before even considering or beginning to reflect on populous reactions.

Keo

[CHestonsucks]

4. This is because

homosexuals represent the last group in society toward which discrimination and hate-mongering is considered socially acceptable by certain flag-wrapped, bible-thumping tinhorns.

Can't bash women or minorities anymore, at least not openly. Might as well take it out on the queers. After all, no real Amurcan cares about 'em anyway, right?

[Zhade]

7. They just want us to "wait until it's appropriate" to demand equal rights.

Problem is, there's never an "appropriate" time for many people.

Back in the closet, queers, and wait until we tell you it's safe to demand that equality so many of you have fought and even died for!

[gorviston]

16. Unless you count dope-smokers ; )

[JusticeForAll]

5. I wonder what the other 21 are n/t

[Crachet2004]

9. 21st out of 22? Not exactly the raging hot issue the GOP had hoped...

I guess. Sounds like all the juice has been wrung out of gun control and abortion rights...which is good.

9-11 (and us getting our asses kicked in the last two elections) killed gun control as an issue and I guess there is still a 6-3 majority on the Supreme Court vis-a-vis Roe v Wade.

So now republicans want to fight over gay marriage but it is only 21 out of 22. Huh.

I think they are running out of wedge issues. What will the GOP run on in the future if they don't have hate?

Maybe they will find a foreign enemy to demonize...or maybe they just won't have elections...that is what I am worried about.

[PurityOfEssence]

13. Sheer idiocy! This shows that it ISN'T MUCH OF AN ISSUE

This says that it's 6 to 8 percentage points higher than abortion or gun control, neither of which are slam-dunk deciding issues these days. The ones for whom these issues are deal-breakers won't vote the other way in any scenario.

There will also be some unintended backlash: Americans, for all their weird Puritanism and assorted other faults, don't dig hate legislation. It's one thing to get people to fight to guarantee rights to a group--many won't step forward and make the effort--but it's another thing entirely to get people to actively stand up and deny people rights.

Regardless of how the right frames this ugliness as "saving civilization" or some other version of close-minded rectitude, it's hate legislation designed to define a vast swath of society as inferior. This isn't like Black Civil Rights (you can always compartmentalize and dismiss the "other"), this is like Women's Rights: they come in every color, religion, social stratum and profession. The genie's been out of the bottle for too long and too many people know gay people personally; even if they're creeped out by the concept, they still know them as people, and this is simply mean-spirited. We may be a selfish and oblivious people, but we're not a mean people.

Don't be too surprised if this goes onto the back burner shortly: Junior's strutted his upholder of virtue crap for the faithful, but I doubt he's going to harp on it much more.

Besides, they're going to try to polarize on the Pledge issue shortly, and that's actually much more important to them.

[dusty64]

17. Thats what I thought.

More BS propaganda. The Democrats need to start talking about the economy, environment, and foreign quagmires. If this is brought up again simply state equal rights and get back on the subjects the rightwing doesn't want to talk about.

[DrRang]

14. Actually, not too bad

If only 4 in 10 see this as their single issue, it could be that at least one of those four is strongly FOR gay marriage, leaving only 3 in 10 homophobes, which is about the same percentage of whackjob fundamentalists who'll vote for Bush no matter what.

[leQ]

15. doesn't it strike you queer (no pun intended)...

the very fact that Americans 'by 2-1 margin' oppose gay marriage, yet the very oppposite (almost) is true when it comes to supporting those anti-gay-marriage diehards with their constitutional amendment. and nobody in the press even bothers to ask WHY.

one thing is for sure. gays will gain equal rights sooner or later. the concern on my part (and many people's part i'm sure) is how much longer it can be made a dividing issue. actually, if it wasn't getting the ink it's getting, we wouldn't be getting the tremendous support we're getting - and from some very unlikely sources no less.

i guess that's the silver lining on this cloud.