Former President Bill Clinton has come
out against Amendment One, the North Carolina May 8 ballot question
which would bar the state from recognizing the relationships of gay
and lesbian couples with marriage, civil unions and possibly domestic
partnerships.
Clinton recorded a 60-second ad to be
pushed to the phones of North Carolina voters starting on Monday.
“Hello, this is President Bill
Clinton. I'm calling to urge you to vote against Amendment One on
Tuesday, May 8. If it passes, it won't change North Carolina's law
on marriage. What it will change is North Carolina's ability to keep
good businesses, attract new jobs, and attract and keep talented
entrepreneurs. If it passes, your ability to keep those businesses,
get those jobs and get those talented entrepreneurs will be weakened.
And losing even one job to Amendment One is too big a risk.”
“Its passage would also take away
health insurance from children. And could even take away domestic
violence protections from women.”
“So the real effect of the law is not
to keep the traditional definition of marriage; you've already done
that. The real effect of the law would be to hurt families and drive
away jobs. North Carolina can do better.” (The audio is embedded
in the right panel of this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
President Barack Obama earlier
issued a statement of opposition to the amendment.
(Related: Billy
Graham endorses North Carolina gay marriage ban Amendment One.)