In an interview on Fox News on Friday, Rand Paul stated that marriage equality "offends" him. He also stated that he believed giving gay couples the same legal rights and calling it something other than marriage would solve the problem. However, we have seen in a number of states that that does not work.
At any rate, I am offended by pseudo-libertarians.
From On Top Magazine:
Kentucky senator and potential GOP presidential candidate Rand Paul said on Friday that allowing gay couples to marry “offends” him.
Paul, who describes himself as a “libertarian conservative,” made the remark in an interview with Fox News' Bret Baier.
When Baier asked Paul about gay rights, he responded: “I'm for traditional marriage. I think marriage is between a man and a woman. Ultimately, we could have fixed this a long time ago if we just allowed contracts between adults. We didn't have to call it marriage, which offends myself and a lot of people.”
“I think having competing contracts that would give them equivalency before the law would have solved a lot of these problems, and it may be where we're still headed," he added.
And from
The New Civil Rights Movement:
Rand Paul, who draws his power and popularity from the younger libertarian segment of the Republican Party, Friday attacked same-sex marriage. 61 percent of Republican adults 30 years old and younger support the right of same-sex couples to marry.
Calling marriage between different-sex couples marriage but between same-sex couples something else is the essence of "separate but equal," a policy tried and failed countless times across decades of America's Jim Crow and slavery years.
And last summer, Sen. Paul announced he supports a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, claiming social issues like banning marriage equality and abortion define the GOP.
In Senator Paul's interview with Fox News on Friday, he also told Bret Baier he would eliminate the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, U.S. Dept. of Energy, and the U.S. Dept. of Education.
And, from
Towleroad:
Ian Sams, spokesperson for the Democratic National Committee, said Paul’s remarks demonstrate the potential candidate’s true colors as far-right conservative.
“By saying he’s willing to broaden the GOP’s tent and reach out to new constituencies, Rand Paul is trying to pull the wool over our eyes,” Sams said. “Saying marriage equality ‘offends’ him gives us yet another glimpse of Paul’s true colors — a restrictive, retro social agenda that sets back LGBT rights and questions longstanding gains in civil rights. Support for marriage equality is at record highs, and most Americans now live in states where it’s legal. What’s truly offensive is Rand Paul’s insistence on being stuck in the past and failing to support equal rights for LGBT Americans.”