Four GOP Presidential candidates have signed a pledge to support a constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage. This pledge defines marriage as the union between on man and one woman and is sponsored by a non-profit named the National Organization for Marriage.
On Tuesday, the group announced four candidates have signed the pledge along with those that REFUSED to sign.
The four Republican candidates pledging support for the amendment are as follows:
- Retired Neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson
- Texas Senator Ted Cruz
- Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal
- Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum
The three candidates refusing to sign the pledge are:
- South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham
- Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee
- Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker
According to IJReview, the pledge is in response to the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling that legalized same-sex marriage nationally. The list of candidates that have responded to the groups pledge totals seven, leaving 10 that have yet to acknowledge the group’s request for support.
Here are a few takeaways from the pledge according to IJReview:
“Electing a president in 2016 who is a true champion on marriage is a critical priority, something that is essential if we are to overturn the outrageous, illegitimate decision of the U.S. Supreme Court imposing same-sex ‘marriage’ on every state in the nation.”
Some of the pledge responses are quite surprising, given the public statements that those candidates released either shortly before or in the days following the Obergefell ruling. IJReview conducted an analysis of the presidential candidates’ positions in early July, and found that:
- Scott Walker supports an amendment that would allow states to define marriage; and
- Ben Carson would not push for an amendment to ban same-sex marriages, instead insisting that Americans “uphold the laws of the land.”
IJReview’s analysis for the other candidates who’ve already responded to NOM’s petition align closely with their publicly-stated positions on the issue.
What do you think about this pledge and those who are supporting it? How about those who haven’t said otherwise? Will that affect your support for them at this juncture? Share your thoughts below in our comment section.
