In one of those "I guess we have to mention it, but we'll get it out of the way quickly" reports, the Associated Press on Monday, April 12 tersely told its readers the following about the failure of an attempt in California to repeal California's Proposition 8 (reproduced in full for fair use and discussion purposes):
What AP chose to avoid telling the rest of the nation is why "more established gay rights groups" were not involved in the 2010 repeal campaign. In a Friday OneNewsNow.com item, Randy Thomasson of SaveCalifornia.com explained why:
"California homosexual activist groups are afraid of the conservative backlash against Barack Obama, and so they didn't want to go on this year's ballot," Thomasson explains. "So the small homosexual activist group that tried to didn't get the funding that they wanted."
As a result, petition signatures fell short of the needed 695,000. But Equality California, the largest pro-homosexual activist group in the state, is shooting for a position on the 2012 ballot.
... Same-sex "marriage" activist organizations are counting on new graduates, mainly those graduating from school by 2012 who have been indoctrinated in their schools to accept the homosexual lifestyle, going to the polls. That is why Thomasson finds it important that parents teach their children the truth about the lifestyle and traditional family values.
In other words, "more established gay right groups" made a cynical political calculation that it was more important to avoid hurting Barack Obama and the Democratic Party than it was to try to push their initiative through this year. These groups' constituencies should be upset should be upset by their additional two years of dithering. It would seem reasonable to contend that the AP didn't want the rest of the country to know this.
The political calculation just noted would seem to imply one of two things:
- If we're to believe the conventional wisdom in some quarters, Tea Party activists aren't really on board with the longstanding social issues such as opposition to abortion and same-sex marriage. If so, Prop 8 repeal proponents made a serious miscalculation, because under this logic Tea Partiers would be expected to tip the balance in their direction.
- Tea Party activists are more socially conservative than essays such as this one are letting on, and Prop 8 might have failed by more than it did in 2008 if it were on the 2010 ballot.
I believe it's Door Number 2.
The full text of Prop 8 is, "Shall the California Constitution be changed to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry providing that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California?" It passed in November 2008 by a 52.3% - 47.7% margin, or over 600,000 votes out of almost 13.1 million cast. Since its defeat, as chronicled consistently by Michelle Malkin, sore losers have been targeting people who they know gave money to the Prop 8 effort or who voted for the measure with a wide variety of personal and professional reprisals.
Cross-posted at BizzyBlog.com.
