This Democrat sits in a blue seat—and he wants to amend the constitution to ban same-sex marriage

David Nir for Daily Kos Elections

Daily Kos Staff

Wednesday August 19, 2015 · 2:36 PM PDT

2015/08/19 · 14:36

Dan Lipinski

Illinois Rep. Dan Lipinski is one of the worst Democrats—very possibly the worst—in the House: Among other things, he voted against Obamacare from the right, he's reliably anti-choice, and he's hostile to gay rights. But that thumbnail sketch doesn't fully convey just how awful Lipinski truly is in his heart. What follows will.

According to a 2014 candidate questionnaire put out by the conservative Illinois Family Institute and just unearthed by the Washington Blade, Lipinski supports an amendment to the constitution that would outlaw same-sex marriage. Lipinski's campaign, when asked for comment, did not dispute the accuracy of the questionnaire, nor did it say that Lipinski's views have since changed.

It's pretty stunning that in 2015, there's even one Democrat left in Congress who wants to overturn the constitutional right to marriage for every adult American, regardless of sexual orientation. Even West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, an opponent of same-sex marriage, has said we "must respect and abide by the Supreme Court’s decision."

What's really insulting is that Lipinski represents a solidly blue district in the Chicago area that Obama won by 56-43 margin, so Democrats can and should do better. Pathetically, the establishment has long propped up Lipinski, even going so far as to remove the home a potential primary challenger from his district back in 2011. (Lipinski's father, Bill, was also a congressman; he handed his seat to his son years ago by retiring after the filing deadline.)

But that state of affairs needs to change, and it needs to change next year. There's still time for progressives to find someone to take the fight to Lipinski. We can't afford to have someone this hateful in our ranks, and it's long past time we got rid of him.

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