Republican presidential candidate Rick
Santorum on Wednesday pledged that as president he would fight a
Supreme Court ruling striking down state bans on gay marriage.
The high court will hand down a ruling
this month in a case challenging bans in Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and
Tennessee. The decision could strike down the nation's remaining 13
bans, leading to nationwide marriage equality.
Santorum, who is currently campaigning
in Iowa, called in to Glenn Beck's radio program.
(Related: Rick
Santorum warns tiny turnout in Iowa about gay marriage.)
Beck warned listeners that marriage
equality would lead to churches being forced by the government to
marry gay and lesbian couples.
When asked how he would respond as
president, Santorum answered that such a ruling would be
unconstitutional.
“This is tantamount to government
establishing religion,” Santorum said. “When the United States
government comes in and says this is what you are going to believe,
this is how you're going to practice your faith, this is a new
religion. This violates, in my opinion, the Establishment Clause in
the Constitution that says that Congress shall make no law with
respect to an establishment of religion. If the government goes
around and tells churches what they have to believe in and what their
doctrine is, that is something that is a violation of the First
Amendment.”
“If they get it wrong and the
consequences are what I suspect they will be toward people of faith,”
Santorum
added, “then this president will fight back.”