Taking Sides in California !
Wednesday, July 30, 2008Visit familyleader.net for more articles, news & issues.
From: Maurine Proctor Washington, D.C
In an overt attempt to sabotage Proposition 8, California's marriage protection amendment, Attorney General Jerry Brown has reworded the ballot summary. The initiative that 1.1 million California voters signed and was to have appeared on the ballot read "[Proposition 8] ! amends the California Constitution to provide that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.""
With Brown's creative writing, the new ballot summary says that it "'changes California Constitution to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry." Further it claims that the state will be impacted with a potential revenue loss of several million dollars-an argument calculated to prejudice voters in these difficult economic times.
Jennifer Kerns, spokeswoman for the Protect Marriage coalition, told the LA Times that the new language was "inherently argumentative" and said it could "prejudice voters against the initiative."
The LA Times also reported, "The dust-up reflects the fierce battle being waged over the question of same-sex marriage in California, the most closely-watched social issue that will appear on the November ballot. A! nd it has raised suspicion in some circles that Brown, a possible candidate for governor in 2010, was influenced by politics. "He is delivering something...that is very important to the gay community, and that is a title and summary that is more likely to lead you to vote "no," said political analyst Tony Quinn.
That Brown panders to the gay community instead of believing he needs to take any note of those who support family is a demonstration of where the political clout lies these days. Social conservatives need to step up to the plate with money and time to support the causes they believe in.
The Protect Marriage Coalition, of which Family Leader is a member, will challenge this ballot summary next Tuesday in court. As citizens in California scramble to save marriage, a July 19th Field poll shows just how damaging this language change can be. With the reticence from the population to eliminate anyone's rights! , Prop. 8 falls behind when it is described as a measure to ban gay marriage, but pulls ahead by several points when its exact wording is known.
"This is a complete about-fact from the ballot title that was assigned" when the measure was being circulated for signatures," Kern said.The Wall Street Journal's John Fund has written an intriguing article called "The Far Left's War on Democray" which details how opponents use sometimes outrageous means to derail ballot initiatives. It is worth reading.
