In an op-ed published in Time,
Kentucky Senator Rand Paul reacts to the Supreme Court's decision
striking down state bans on gay marriage, saying that it might be
time for the government to get out of the marriage business.
Kentucky is among the 13 states
affected by the court's ruling.
“While I disagree with [the] Supreme
Court's redefinition of marriage, I believe that all Americans have
the right to contract,” writes Paul, a candidate for the Republican
presidential nomination.
“The government should not prevent
people from making contracts but that does not mean that the
government must confer a special imprimatur upon a new definition of
marriage.”
While Paul says that it might be time
to “examine whether or not governmental recognition of marriage is
a good idea, for either party,” his reasons for doing so stem from
the court's decision.
“Since government has been involved
in marriage, they have done what they always do – taxed it,
regulated it, and now redefined it. … The 14th Amendment
does not command the government endorsement that is conveyed by the
word 'marriage.' State legislatures are entitled to express their
preference for traditional marriage, so long as the equal rights of
same-sex couples are protected.”
“And can the government do its main
job in the aftermath of this ruling – the protection of liberty,
particularly religious liberty and free speech?”