GOP and gay marriage | The Salt Lake Tribune

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

With all the talk about gay marriage, with cases before the Supreme Court, it's amazing to consider that last summer the Republican Party platform not only affirmed that marriage is only between a man and a women but, incredibly, it also called for an amendment to the Constitution to make that view the law everywhere, even in the 10 states where it same-sex marriage is legal.

A lot has happened since then; 58 percent of Americans now support same-sex marriage. Yet last month, the Republican National Committee unanimously and without discussion reaffirmed its commitment to marriage as a union solely between one man and one woman.

The whole nation is in vigorous debate over gays in society, even the Boy Scouts, while the Republican Party doesn't even seem to want to discuss it. Period.

I understand the party's conservative religious wing being not interested in talking about the issue, but what about those who want a smaller government that's less involved in telling people what to do? What about the Barry Goldwater libertarians? And what about people who care about the future of the party?

Welcome to the 21st century.

Sam Campbell

Salt Lake City