Broun says he'll push for amendment to ban gay marriage 05/21/08

Broun says he'll push for amendment to ban gay marriage 05/21/08

Broun says he'll push for amendment to ban gay marriage
| | Story updated at 11:28 PM on Wednesday, May 21, 2008
U.S. Rep. Paul Broun, R-Athens, said Tuesday he will propose an amendment to the U.S. Constitution banning same-sex marriage in reaction to a California Supreme Court ruling last week legalizing the practice.

"My amendment will preserve the original intent of the drafters of the Constitution, by ensuring that no state or federal judge can take it upon themselves to suddenly discover a right to homosexual marriage within the text of the document," Broun said in a news release. "It will also provide a defense against activist judges who seek to overturn the will of the people by manipulating state constitutions in order to impose their preferred policy position."

Broun previously has said he opposes same-sex marriage, but it should be up to states to ban it, a stance his opponent in the July Republican primary, state Rep. Barry Fleming, has criticized. Fleming also has called for such a ban.

Georgia voters approved an amendment to the state constitution outlawing same-sex marriage in 2004