Mitt Romney has expanded on his
Thursday comment that he is “fine” with gay couples adopting
children.
Romney made the comment during an
appearance on Fox News, in which he discussed the President's recent
“evolution” from supporting civil unions to marriage for gay and
lesbian couples.
“I believe that my record as a person
who has supported civil rights is strong and powerful. At the same
time, I believe that marriage has been defined the same way for
literally thousands of years by virtually every civilization in
history, and that marriage is literally, by its definition, a
relationship between a man and a woman,” Romney said.
“And if two people of the same gender
want to live together, want to have a loving relationship, or even to
adopt a child – in my state individuals of the same sex were able
to adopt children. In my view, that's something that people have a
right to do. But to call that marriage is something that in my view
is a departure from the real meaning of that word.”
Romney reversed course less than 24
hours later, telling Charlotte-based WBTV that he was merely
“acknowledging” the fact it is legal for gay couples to adopt in
many states.
“Actually, I think all states but one
allow gay adoption,” said Romney. “So that's a position which
has been decided by most of the state legislatures, including the one
in my state some time ago. So I simply acknowledged the fact that
gay adoption is legal in all states but one.” (The video is
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