Rick Santorum Says GOP Backing Gay Marriage Would Be 'Suicidal'
Following the recent decisions of two GOP senators to change their position in support of same-sex marriage, former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) said in recent interview that it would be "suicidal" for the Republican Party to change its platform regarding same-sex marriage.
Santorum argued in a recent interview that this is not the first time the media and the public have hinted at the Republican Party changing positions on some social issues, and that ultimately the fervor around same-sex marriage will die out.
The former senator, who also ran for the GOP presidential nomination in 2012, said that although he recognizes an "increasing mood" for the support of same-sex marriage, he believes the sentiment "is not a well thought-out position by the American public."
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"I'm sure you could go back and read stories, oh, you know, 'The Republican Party's going to change. This is the future.' Obviously that didn't happen," Santorum told the Des Moines Register in a Monday interview.
"I think you're going to see the same stories written now and it's not going to happen. The Republican Party's not going to change on this issue. In my opinion it would be suicidal if it did," Santorum added.
The U.S. Supreme Court will be issuing decisions on two court cases relating to same-sex marriage come June, one which challenges California's ban on same-sex marriage, and another which questions the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
Santorum told the Des Moines Register that he hopes a "chastened Supreme Court is not going to make the same mistake in the [current] cases as they did in Roe v. Wade," adding that he hopes the Supreme Court will not bend to what is considered popular by cultural standards.
Earlier in March, two GOP politicians became the first senators in their party to voice their support for same-sex marriage.
The first was Ohio Senator Rob Portman, who said he changed his position on same-sex marriage after his son came out as openly homosexual.
Portman told Politico on Tuesday that he does not believe the GOP's opposition to same-sex marriage will affect the party's politics.
"I'm not particularly worried about it," Portman told Politico at the economy-centered Morning Money breakfast event in Washington, D.C.
"I think for most Americans, the top issue is what we're talking about here today, which is jobs and the economy; how to get this economy moving in a way that provides opportunity," Portman added.
The second politician to support same-sex marriage was GOP Senator Mark Kirk of Illinois, saying that his near-death experience after suffering a stroke made him realize that life on earth is limited and therefore he believes the gay community should be able to marry.
Although much of the liberal media has claimed that these two senators represent the future of the GOP party, Republican leaders continue to assert that the definition of marriage being between a man and a woman is of the utmost centrality to their platform.
Brian Brown, president for the National Organization for Marriage, which opposes the legalization of same-sex marriage, previously said that any GOP member who chooses to support same-sex marriage would be "casting a career-ending vote and will be held accountable to their constituents."
Additionally, Mike Huckabee, former Governor of Arkansas, has warned that if the conservative party does choose to change its position on same-sex marriage, it will surely lose the massive following of evangelical Americans, who oppose the redefinition of marriage on religious grounds.
Santorum will visit Iowa this upcoming Monday to be the keynote speaker at the Faith & Freedom Coalition's Spring Kickoff fundraising event in Des Moines.
