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“Paterson’s Gay Marriage in New York? A Very Long Shot”
Steve Adubato, Ph.D.
CBS 2 Political Analyst
New York Governor David Paterson has a new cause. Paterson, whose poll numbers continue to slip and whose political power is weakened by the minute, has become a champion of gay marriage in the Empire State. Paterson, in a much-publicized press conferencem along with Mayor Michael Bloomberg and City Council President Christine Quinn, unveiled a bill to legalize same-sex marriage, even though the measure has been rejected by the more conservative New York State Senate after having passed the Assembly.
On many levels, I agree that same-sex marriage should be passed in New York State, given that certain legal benefits to couples, including health insurance coverage and hospital visitation, can only be given to couples whose relationship is sanctioned by the state as an official marriage. I say, gay individuals should not be discriminated against just because the government does not sanction their relationship.
However, there are practical political issues here, the biggest one being that Governor Paterson is the wrong political figure to lead this most difficult and challenging effort. Paterson can’t even get a budget passed and is perceived by many Democrats to be a weak candidate to represent them state wide on the ballot in 2010. For most New Yorkers, the only issue that really matters has to do with the economy and their individual pocketbooks.
Philosophically and morally, I argue that there is no perfect time to propose that citizens’ rights be protected. However, politically speaking, Governor Paterson’s comparing of the gay marriage movement to the civil rights movement is problematic on many levels. First, the leadership of the Black Church has never been particularly supportive of gay marriage. Many blacks and others who are closely tied to their church interpret the Bible literally and believe that God believed that marriage should only be between a man and a woman.
Simply put, Governor Paterson is not only going to have a hard time to get Upstate Republican Senators to support his gay marriage proposal, he’s also going to have a hard time getting minority Democrats with ties to their church aboard. In addition, New York has a new Archbishop, Timothy Dolan. He too has announced his opposition, reinforcing long-time teachings of the Catholic Church.
Simply put, even though it seems like the right thing to do constitutionally and morally to allow same-sex couples to the same legal rights and benefits as heterosexual couples, it is very long-shot indeed passing such a law in Albany, as long as David Paterson is leading the effort.. Gay rights advocates and others that support gay marriage will have a better shot when and if a more popular Democrat becomes Governor and is willing to lead this effort. Two words: Andrew Cuomo.
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