President Santorum: I Won’t Enforce Gay Marriage Because It’s ‘Government Establishing Religion’
If elected President, Rick Santorum says he will not enforce a Supreme Court ruling that supports same-sex marriage, because it would violate the First Amendment.
What do you get when you put Rick Santorum and Glenn Beck together?
This.
If elected President, Santorum told Beck this morning, he will not enforce a Supreme Court ruling that finds a right for same-sex couples to marry.
That’s not even the interesting part.Â
This is.
Why?
Beck, citing disgraced “historian” David Barton, claims that legalized nationwide same-sex marriage will mean that churches will be forced to marry same-sex couples and will be stripped of their tax-exempt status.
Which of course is baloney.
But not to the former Republican Senator from Pennsylvania, who sees the First Amendment far differently than you, I, or legal experts.
“This is tantamount to government establishing religion,” Santorum told Beck, as Right Wing Watch reported.
Which of course is baloney.
“When the United States government comes in and says this is what you are going to believe, this is how you’re going to practice your faith, this is a new religion. This violates, in my opinion, the Establishment Clause in the Constitution that says that Congress shall make no law with respect to an establishment of religion. If the government goes around and tells churches what they have to believe in and what their doctrine is, that is something that is a violation of the First Amendment.”
If you’re thinking, “Gosh, that sounds ridiculous,” you’re right.
LOOK:Â Now That He’s Running For President, Let’s Look At Ten Of Rick Santorum’s Worst Anti-Gay Comments
Santorum continued his fear-mongering, claiming that if the Supreme Court rules for marriage equality, “there is no way that the left will stop at mere tolerance.”
“They will demand conformity, they will demand it from the church, they will demand it from every institution, they will demand it from businesses and there will be no tolerance to a different point of view on this issue.”
He then fell back to his Mike Huckabee position, claiming that the Supreme Court is merely a co-equal branch of government with no hold over the executive or legislative branches.
Again, if you’re thinking, “Gosh, that sounds ridiculous,” you’re right.
“If they get it wrong and the consequences are what I suspect they will be toward people of faith,” Santorum promised, “then this president will fight back.”
Watch:
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Related:
‘Not Bound By What Nine People Say’: Rick Santorum Will Fight Supreme Court On Same-Sex Marriage
Santorum To Announce Presidential Decision, Says White Nationalist’s Work Influences His Positions
Dan Savage Mocks GOP Presidential Hopefuls For Their ‘Imaginary Hypothetical Gay Friends’
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Image by Gage Skidmore via Flickr and a CC license
Hat tip and video: Right Wing Watch
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