Ryan Anderson, a fellow at the
conservative Heritage Foundation and the author of What Is
Marriage?, claims that laws prohibiting gay marriage are
constitutional.
Anderson made his comments during an
appearance on cabler CBN's The 700 Club.
When asked his opinion on two cases
related to the issue before the Supreme Court, Anderson said the
court should uphold the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and
California's Proposition 8. DOMA is the 1996 law which prevents the
federal government from recognizing the legal marriages of gay and
lesbian couples, while Proposition 8 is the 2008 voter-approved
constitutional amendment which reversed a California Supreme Court
ruling legalizing marriage equality.
“The law here is pretty clear,”
Anderson said. “The Supreme Court should uphold both Proposition 8
and Defense of Marriage Act. Our constitution does not require the
redefinition of marriage. Marriage laws that reflect the truth about
what marriage is are wholly constitutional. And citizens have the
authority to vote about what marriage is. Unelected judges should
not be redefining marriage.”
Anderson also claimed that marriage
equality would lead to plural marriages.
“Because if marriage is just about a
community of love, you know whatever consenting adults choose to love,
that can come in as many sizes and shapes as consent comes in. So,
if you say there's a fundamental right to marry the person you love,
why not the people you love? If justice demands same-sex marriage
for the same-sex couple, why not the same-sex throuple? A throuple
is a three-person couple.” (The video is embedded on this page.
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Earlier, Anderson got into a heated
debated with money guru Suze Orman during an appearance on CNN's
Piers Morgan Tonight.
(Related: Suze
Orman, Piers Morgan dismiss arguments of gay marriage foe Ryan
Anderson.)