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POLITICS
Mass, governor pushes S.C. gay marriage ban
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Gov. Mitt Romney reportedly
posturing for ’08 prez run
by Jim Baxter . Q-Notes staff
Through his political action committee,
Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has given
SCformarriage.org — the organization that is
leading efforts in South Carolina to ban gay
marriage — $5,000, its largest donation ever.
He is the effort’s first (and so far only) “cam
paign sponsor,” a category reserved for major
contributors.
Romney also plans to send out a
fundraising letter on behalf of the initia
tive to about 150,000 South Carolinians
in the next few weeks, according to a July
1 report in the Boston Globe, and is
expected to headline an event for the
organization after Labor Day.
“Romney’s donation makes clear that
the amendment here is not based in the
best interests of South Carolinians, but
based in a national agenda against gay
people,” said Ed Madden, chairman of
the SC Equality Coalition (SCEC).
“It is a campaign driven by politics
and crass opportunism, not a campaign
based in what is best for South Carolina
families.”
South Carolina holds one of the most
important Republican presidential primaries,
and Romney has made several trips to the
state, most recently on June 22.
Last month, a Utah newspaper reported
Romney had raised more than $1.6 million
through a federal political action committee
and five state PACs, including one from South
Carolina that has raised $144,830.
Romney’s fundraising organization, the
Commonwealth PAC,has already made thou
sands of dollars in contributions to GOP can
didates and organizations in South Carolina.
Making this contribution to an anti-gay
marriage organization is widely seen as just
another effort in promoting himself in prepa
ration for a possible
2008 presidential run.
Romney’s PAC has
reportedly just hired a
fundraiser and activist
to build support in
South Carolina.
Asha Leong, manager
of SCEC’s “Fairness for All
Families” campaign, told
the press that the state
doesn’t take kindly to out
siders interjecting them
selves into local affairs.
“The thing is that
South Carolinians want
to hear from other
Southerners and other
people from South Carolina about what this is
going to mean in our daily lives,” she said.
“The real tragedy is that a person like Gov
Romney, who sees himself as a leader in
Massachusetts Gov. Mitt
Romney has given
SCformarriage.org its
largest donation ever:
$5,000.
America, so callously disregards the lives of
nearly a quarter million South Carolinians,”
said Warren Redman-Gress, executive director
of South Carolina’s Alliance For Full Acceptance
(AFFA).“He’s using our lives and the people we
love as political stepping stones.”
“It is shameful when a politician marginal
izes citizens with ignorant rhetoric to turn out
votes for his own campaign.”
Mike Green, a South Carolina Republican
activist, pointed out to the Globe that Drew
McKissick — state director for
SCformarriage.org — used to be political
director of the Christian Coalition, which he
said could give Romney access to a vast net
work of conservatives.
“We definitely appreciate the help of Gov.
Romney and his PAC,” McKissick told the press.
“I will continue to work to help preserve
traditional marriage,” Romney said in a state
ment released by SCforMarriage.org and
reported on July 7 on CNN, “and I applaud
this effort in South Carolina as well as others
like it across the nation.”
Romney’s move, some observers say, could
possibly inspire other similar efforts.
CNN’s Mark Preston asked in a June 30
commentary,“Given the importance of the
South Carolina presidential primary,” will
other Republicans eyeing the 2008 GOP nomi
nation follow Romney’s lead and weigh in
financially on this issue?” >
info: wwwicequality.org/resources/leam_more/pdf/
FamiliesFaimess.pdf
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10 JULY 29.2006 *Q-NOTES