Bitter Tears

Friday night was a historic night for New York state. It became the sixth state to approve marriage equality. It was also the first state to approve marriage equality by a bipartisan vote of their legislature. Many see this as huge momentum for bringing marriage equality to the whole country but their are still groups bitterly opposed. The most prominent of them is the National Organization for Marriage (NOM). Below is their press release promising punishment for Republicans that dare vote yes on equality.

“The Republican party has torn up its contract with the voters who trusted them in order to facilitate Andrew Cuomo’s bid to be president of the U.S. Selling out your principles to get elected is wrong. Selling out your principles to get the other guy elected is just plain dumb.

Gay marriage has consequences for the next generation, for parents, and for religious people, institutions and small business owners. Politicians who campaign one way on marriage, and then vote the other, need to understand: betraying and misleading voters has consequences, too. We are not giving up, we will continue to fight to protect marriage in New York, as we are actively doing in New Hampshire and Iowa.”

NOM’s pledge to commit at least $2 million in the 2012 elections to hold politicians accountable for their vote includes independent expenditures as well as through NOM PAC New York.

Even though full marriage equality is probably inevitable (with a lot of hard work), the Republicans that voted yes were particularly brave. Just for a reminder, here’s the statement from Republican Senator Grisanti:

“Tonight, I joined my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to legalize same sex marriage in New York State. Since I began my term as Senator I have met with many people on both sides of this issue, read numerous documents and independent studies. Given the high stakes, I felt I owed it to everyone to make a well-informed decision. I have come to believe that all New Yorkers should be entitled to the same rights that come with a civil marriage. As an attorney I analyzed the legislation and concluded that the amendments provide critical exemptions for religious institutions. Passage of this bill now rather than later ensures that these protections be included. I cannot deny anyone in my district and across New York the same rights I have with my wife.”

I think it must be quite tough to be a politician voting on an issue in the midst of a change. Just this year several national polls have shown a that a bare majority of Americans support marriage equality (not just civil unions). That means, though, that almost half don’t although full opposition is probably less than 40% or so. The politicians are trying to shift with the tide and aren’t always getting it right. We should keep up the pressure and make sure to reward politicians that do the right thing.

For further info on Senator Grisanti, here is an article titled “Grisanti on gay marriage vote: hero or villain?”