A new web ad released Monday on YouTube
by Senator John McCain's re-election campaign mocks the senator's
leading Republican primary opponent, former Representative J.D.
Hayworth, for his opposition to gay marriage.
The ad might suggest that McCain
supports gay marriage or merely that he believes Hayworth's argument
is silly.
The parody ad pretends to be a Hayworth
campaign spot where the former congressman touts his political
leadership.
“These are serious times that require
serious leaders,” J.D. Hayworth says in the ad.
“I'm running for U.S. Senate to take
on the most pressing challenges facing Arizona, America and indeed
the entire human race.”
“First, I've committed to exposing
the secret Kenyan birthplace of the president of the United States.”
“Second, I've stood up against the
grave threat of man-horse marriage,” he adds, referring to his
comments on gay marriage made last month during an interview on
Orlando-based radio station WORL.
The fifty-one-year-old politician
called the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruling that legalized gay
marriage in the state “dangerous” because it defines marriage as
simply “the establishment of intimacy.”
“Now how dangerous is that?”
Hayworth said.
“I guess that would mean if you
really had affection for your horse, I guess you could marry your
horse.”
The former television sportscaster then
affirmed his support for a federal constitutional amendment defining
marriage as a heterosexual union, a move that would strike down
existing gay marriage laws and block the Supreme Court from
legalizing the institution.
McCain voted against the federal
marriage amendment but supports state enacted bans on gay marriage.
McCain, however, has signaled that he's
OK with gay unions. For example, as the 2008 Republican presidential
candidate, McCain asked for the gay vote, saying “I will have an
inclusive administration and I will be a president for all
Americans.” Gay Republicans interpreted his remarks as possible
support for civil unions for gay couples. McCain's wife and daughter
both support gay marriage.
The ad ends with, “I'm not J.D.
Hayworth and I did not approve this message,” then adds, “Paid
for by friends of John McCain.”