http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=615&e=1&u=/nm/20040224/pl_nm/bush_gays_dc
Bush to Endorse Amendment Banning Gay Marriage
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush (news - web sites) on Tuesday will endorse a constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage, seizing the initiative in a contentious issue that could energize his conservative base for the November election.
Same-sex marriage has become a hot-button issue in this presidential election year, with opponents saying it would destroy the institution of marriage.
"The president will announce his support for a constitutional amendment to protect the sanctity of marriage," said White House spokesman Scott McClellan.
The Republican president was to make the announcement in the White House at 10:45 a.m. EST, a day after plunging into the political fray with a broad assault on Democrat John Kerry (news - web sites), the U.S. senator from Massachusetts who is running for his party's presidential nomination.
Amending the constitution is a difficult task. It can take years to win the support of two-thirds of the House of Representatives, two-thirds of the Senate and ratification by three-quarters of the states.
However, Democrats expect conservatives to push the gay marriage issue intensely in an election year in which jobs, health care and the economy are on voters' minds.
Recent polls show the issue could be a winner for Bush, who has long courted Christian conservatives as a key element of his political base.
"He has always strongly believed that marriage is a sacred institution between a man and a woman," McClellan said. "This is a principled decision."
Bush has been troubled by events in San Francisco, where marriage licenses have been issued to gays and lesbians. Conservative family groups had asked two courts to halt the flood of City Hall weddings.
The White House is also paying close attention to Massachusetts, where legislators are debating what to do after a state court ruling that gay couples have the right to wed.
Bush will not endorse specific legislative language but says he will work with Congress on the language.
"He is going to urge Congress to move as soon as possible on this issue," McClellan said, while acknowledging it could be a lengthy process. "We need to act now."
