White
House Stands by Santorum
The
Advocate, April 25, 2003
The White House issued a statement Friday saying that
Republican U.S. senator Rick Santorum is doing a good job as party leader and
is “an inclusive man,” despite his recent controversial remarks about
homosexuality. “The president has confidence in the senator and believes
he’s doing a good job as senator” and in his Senate GOP leadership post as
the third-highest-ranking Republican, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer
said.
In an April 7 interview with the Associated Press,
Santorum, Pennsylavnia’s junior senator, compared homosexuality to bigamy,
polygamy, incest, and adultery. He also said the right to privacy is not
covered in the Constitution.
“The president believes the senator is an inclusive
man. And that’s what he believes,” Fleischer said. The White House
expressed confidence in the leadership of Republican senator Trent Lott
(R-Miss.) in the immediate aftermath of his defense of a 1948 pro-segregation
presidential ticket. As the backlash against Lott’s remarks grew, however,
Bush admonished Lott for his remarks and said it was up to the Senate to
decide whether he should remain as majority leader. Lott resigned soon after.
About Santorum, Fleischer said the Senate picks its leaders.
On Thursday more than 300 people gathered outside
Santorum’s Philadelphia office to protest the senator’s comments.
“Santorum has shown himself to be intellectually unfit for his position of
leadership in the U.S. Senate,” said Mike Marsico, cochairman of Liberty
City Democratic Club, the gay political group that organized the protest.
“Not only are we calling on the Republican leadership to denounce his
comments but to demote his position in Congress.”
Republican senators Lincoln Chaffee of Rhode Island
and Olympia Snowe of Maine have also taken issue with Santorum’s remarks.
“I thought his choice of comparisons was unfortunate, and the premise that
the right of privacy does not exist—just plain wrong,” Chaffee said in
statement Thursday. “Senator Santorum’s views are not held by this
Republican and many others in our party.” On Wednesday Snowe said
Santorum’s comments “undermine Republican principles of inclusion and
opportunity.”
[Home] [News] [Lawrence
v. Texas] [Santorum] [Spreading
Santorum]
