Senator John Ensign [R-NV] quotes are coming fast and furious [Nope – that’s his wife, Darlene]:Washington Post, 1999: Christian politicians and evangelical leaders commonly follow an unspoken rule not to meet behind closed doors with women staff members or travel alone with them. The Rev. Billy Graham, for example, has famously refused to be alone in a room with any woman except his wife since he married her in the 1940s. Rep. Steve Largent [R-OK], a Christian conservative, insists a male staff member is present whenever he meets with a woman, his spokesman said. John Ensign, who is running for senate in Nevada will not be alone in a car with a woman.
- Las Vegas Sun, 1998: I came to that conclusion recently, and frankly it’s because of what he put his whole Cabinet through and what he has put the country through,” Ensign said Thursday, becoming the first member of the Nevada delegation to call for Clinton to quit. “He has no credibility left.”
- U.S. Senate: “Sadly, the effort to redefine marriage against the wishes of a majority of the people is, with help from activist judges, succeeding,” Ensign said. “In order to defend the institution of marriage, uphold the rights of individual states, and maintain the will of the people, I believe we are compelled to amend our country’s constitution.” “The effort to pass a constitutional amendment reaffirming marriage as being between a man and a woman only is being undertaken strictly as a defense of marriage against the attempt to redefine it and, in the process, weaken it,” Ensign said. “Marriage is an extremely important institution in this country and protecting it is, in my mind, worth the extraordinary step of amending our constitution.”
on Larry Craig’s story: "There’s too many people that paint with a broad brush that we’re all corrupt, we’re all amoral. … And having these kinds of things happen, whether it’s a Republican or Democratic senator — we certainly have had plenty of Democratic scandals in the past — we need people who are in office who will hold themselves to a little higher standard."
U.S. Senate: “I believe that marriage should be defined as that between one man and one woman. You want to do what is ideal for children and all of the studies show that the ideal for children is to be in a household with a father and a mother.”
“… all of the studies show that the ideal for children is to be in a household with a father and a mother.” however, while Senator John Ensign had his affair, he and his wife were separated. The point isn’t that the guy had an affair. That’s his business. The point is that the political posturing about marriage, gay marriage, etc. is simply that – political posturing…
UPDATE:
Statement for couple regarding Ensign affair
By The Associated Press
Statement by Daniel Albregts, attorney for Doug and Cindy Hampton, regarding Sen. John Ensign’s extramarital affair:Doug and Cindy Hampton can confirm that they are the individuals referenced by Sen. Ensign during his press conference. It is unfortunate the senator chose to air this very personal matter, especially after the Hamptons did everything possible to keep this matter private. It is equally unfortunate that he did so without concern for the effect such an announcement would have on the Hampton family. In time the Hamptons will be ready and willing to tell their side of the story. Until then, please respect their privacy.
“all of the studies show that the ideal for children is to be in a household with a father and a mother.â€
And just as an aside: that tired argument conservatives use against same-sex parenting is an example of comparing apples and oranges.
Some of the so-called studies they quote are outright bogus, like those done by the notorious Paul Cameron. But they do sometimes quote legitimate studies, but they are ones that compare children raised by a heterosexual couple with children raised by single mothers.
Then they say, see: children raised by a mother and a father do better. They don’t compare the children raised by male-female parents with children raised by male-male or female-female parents. When you do those comparisons, there is no significant difference. In some, children of same-sex parents actually are better adjusted in most of the categories.
For one thing, same-sex couples who have their own children together (as opposed to raising kids from a prior marriage of one partner) are never unwanted children. Same-sex pregnancies do not happen accidentally.
And most journalists — and judges — are not sophisticated or knowledgeable enough to call these science-challenged bigots on it.
I agree with your comments, but I think the whole way of thinking is a trap. Using their logic, all alcoholics and drug addicts should be barred from having kids. And why not throw in “borderline” people. Foster kids and adoptive kids don’t do as well as others. Ghetto kids of young single mothers don’t fare so well either. We don’t measure children by any parameter in parents that I know of. Instead, we look at the kid, and in the absence of active wounds, sexual trauma, or malnutrition, we stay out of things. To me, it’s like talking about the efficacy of torture – who cares. We don’t torture. And as for kids, it’s not for us to say who raises them. None of this guy’s business. All we ask is that they’re well cared for and go to school.
Of course gay parents are good parents. As you say, they have to work at having kids. The point in this argument is that we are desperate for good people to care for children. What better resource than the gay community…
And as for Senator Ensign, he’s an absent parent. He spends his weeks in Washington, and was actually separated from his wife when he had this affair. Not exactly parent-of-the-year…
I agree that the argument is irrelevant — but it’s trotted out as “evidence” against not only parenting but marriage for same-sex couples.
It is parallel to the argument about whether torture works. It’s wrong, whether it works or not. Denying same-sex couples the right to adopt or to form a stable marriage is wrong, aside from how well they do as parents.
In fact, I think that Ensign’s story is exemplary. This guy was one of those marriage is a holy man/woman thing types. That’s a vote getter process, not a morality. Arguing with these guys is a waste of time because they don’t believe or care about what they’re saying in the first place – it’s just a way to get elected.