In many of my diary entries, I've been mulling over ways the Democratic candidate for President (whoever that turns out to be) can neutralize, or even capitalize on, upcoming attacks from the Republicans on the issue of same-sex marriage or partnerships. We know, they'll be attacking--they've
already said as much. I've been arguing that we can't sit back and wait, that we must go on the offensive. We've got to define the debate, not let our opponents do it. Well, in my inability to sleep tonight, I was playing around with this idea for an advertisement:
In many of my diary entries, I've been mulling over ways the Democratic candidate for President (whoever that turns out to be) can neutralize, or even capitalize on, upcoming attacks from the Republicans on the issue of same-sex marriage or partnerships. We know, they'll be attacking--they've
already said as much. I've been arguing that we can't sit back and wait, that we must go on the offensive. We've got to define the debate, not let our opponents do it. Well, in my inability to sleep tonight, I was playing around with this idea for an advertisement:
SCENE: A nice living room. A married couple (the man-woman kind) in their fifties sitting on a couch. Together, their holding a picture of two women in their late 20s or 30s.
MAN: Hi, I'm John and this is my wife Jane. We just celebrated our 35th wedding anniversary.
WOMAN: And this is a picture of our daughter Lisa and her partner Anne. They've been together for seven years.
MAN: We love them both very much; and we're very proud because they just bought their first house.
WOMAN: But, like any parents, we worry about them. Part of our worry comes from the fact that George Bush and the Republicans want to change the Constitution so that Lisa and Anne will permanently be legal strangers to each other.
MAN: That's right. George Bush and the Republicans want to change the Constitution so that, should--heaven forbid--anything happen to one of these women, the other could be denied the right to visit her in the hospital...
WOMAN: ...or to inherit the house they just bought together.
MAN: Because my daughter's family looks different than his, George Bush and the Republicans want to change the Constitution to make sure that she doesn't have the same rights that her mother and I do.
WOMAN: George Bush and the Republicans are attacking my daughter's family.
MAN: And when they do that, they're attacking my family, too.
DEM PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE enters the room: George Bush came into office saying he wanted to unite Americans. By trying to change the Constitution and punish families that don't look like his, he's dividing Americans. My name is ___ and I approved this ad because I want to be President for all of America's families.
END
Maybe not elegant, subtle, or completely worked through, but brings a pro-family message from the democrats, talks about uniting Americans, and puts the anti-family charge out there our opponents to defend against--with specific examples (others might work better) that show exactly how cruel their attacks are.