Ron Paul's opposition to a
constitutional amendment banning gay marriage is the subject of a new
ad sponsored by the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), the
nation's most vociferous opponent of gay marriage.
Paul's sharp rise in the polls has lead
to speculation that the Texas Congressman could be the big winner of
next week's Iowa caucuses.
The 30-second ad opens with the
suggestion that Paul is not a legitimate contender, “All the major
presidential candidates have pledged to preserve traditional
marriage,” and quotes Paul as saying that marriage is a private
affair.
“Ron Paul has even called for
abolishing marriage altogether,” a male announcer says. “You may
think of Ron Paul as a conservative, but when it comes to marriage,
he's a radical who would destroy traditional marriage in America.”
(The video is embedded in the right panel of this page. Visit
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NOM President Brian Brown told The
New York Times it was important for caucusgoers to
know where Paul stood on the issue: “There's five days left. This
is the critical period. This is a very unique election. People are
still making up their minds in Iowa, and that's why it's important we
do this now.”
In recent days, Paul
has also battled charges that he's “uncomfortable” with gay
people.