In an op-ed this week, conservative
columnist Jennifer Rubin called on the National Organization for
Marriage (NOM) to end its campaign against gay marriage.
“Like a candidate losing every
primary, you wonder how long the National Organization for Marriage
(NOM) can hold on,” Rubin wrote in Right
Turn, her The Washington Post blog.
“What exactly does NOM do as voters
in state after state decide to expand marriage to gay couples? There
aren't enough states for a constitutional amendment. It's no longer
a matter of judicial activism, but a sea change in public opinion
that is propelling the legal shift. How many contests does NOM lose
before it – or its donors – figures out the argument is not going
to carry the day?”
For its part, NOM continues to describe
the inevitability of gay nuptials as a myth and push for a
constitutional amendment.
In an interview with USA Today
in March, NOM President Brian Brown predicted a recently approved
marriage bill in Illinois would fail. He said that the bill's slow
progress – it took nearly a year and several attempts to clear both
chambers – “shows you that this myth that somehow same-sex
marriage is inevitable is just a myth.”
“The irony is that there is something
very important NOM could be doing, without even changing its name,”
Rubin said.
“Campaign for marriage, not against
gay marriage. Root out marriage penalties in the tax code. Enlist
religious and secular groups to tout marriage and inform people about
its physical, psychological and economic benefits. Promote private
marriage counseling. If MADD can change attitudes on drunk driving,
the environmental movement can make recycling delinquents into social
pariahs and a conservative talk show host and Democratic senator can
set out to raise awareness of adoption, NOM can certainly lead a
cultural movement to promote marriage.”
(Related: Gay
marriage foe NOM ended 2012 with $1 million deficit.)