In Support of Traditional Marriage

Statement

I stand squarely in support of traditional marriage. Many studies have shown that both a mother and father are essential for raising successful and healthy children.

I am an original co-sponsor on the Marriage Protection Act (H.J. Res. 51) sponsored by Representative Tim Huelskamp of Kansas. This resolution is simply written as, "Marriage in the United States shall consist only of the union of a man and a woman. Neither this Constitution, nor the constitution of any State, shall be construed to require that marriage or the legal incidents thereof be conferred upon any union other than the union of a man and a woman."

In 1996, Defense of Marriage Act or DOMA defined marriage for the purposes of federal law as the union of one man and one woman. It passed by an overwhelming bipartisan majority in both chambers of Congress and was signed into law by President Bill Clinton. However, it was recently deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.

As Congressman Huelskamp observed, "With the Supreme Court's ruling on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), a very narrow 5-4 majority substituted its personal preferences on marriage for the Constitutional decisions of the American people and their elected Representatives. In doing so, five activist justices have short-circuited the democratic process."

The court's decision was a disappointment not only because it is contrary to millennia of human experience, but also because it is clearly contrary to the choice of the people as expressed in a constitutionally valid process.

I will not stand idly by and let the Supreme Court overthrow the people's voice and legislative bodies. Activist judges will not decide the fate of this issue, and I will continue to fight for traditional marriage.

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