From Newsweek:
Looking for a way to pick up swing voters in the Red States, former President Bill Clinton, in a phone call with Kerry, urged the Senator to back local bans on gay marriage. Kerry respectfully listened, then told his aides, “I’m not going to ever do that.”
For shame. My respect for Bill Clinton just dropped a notch, the inverse being true of Senator Kerry.
Fourty years ago, many politicians lost elections for supporting civil rights legislation that was anathema to their constituents. Today, they wear their opposition as a badge of honor. I understand the cold political calculus behind decisions made then and now, but some things have to be more important than winning the next election.
It all brings to mind the most poignant statement of the post-election:
Democrats will never win another elction if they keep trying to siphon off votes from the Republicans. They will only win by creating a lot more Democrats, and you don’t do that by trying to leach onto issues that you should be denouncing.
-Bill Maher