Schmidt to GOP: Lean A Bit To The Left and Support Gay Marriage

For the 2008 United States Elections, there were a bunch of hot topics. The first major hot topic was the state of the United States economy. At a distant second would be the war going on in Iraq. One issue brought up would be same-sex marriage. This has been one of the biggest issues in California. The Proposition 8 campaign in California was something that one should have paid very close attention to. It was California’s biggest and costliest campaign. The magnitude of this campaign in California could match the magnitude of the general US Presidential election between GOP nominee John McCain and Democratic nominee Barack Obama. During that time, Obama was the junior senator from Illinois. McCain is still the Arizona senator. Overall, the issue of same-sex marriage is considered a very heated and debated topic. This debate has taken place in other parts of the country. This is the most intense topic in California. The political fallout was very devastating. In a nutshell, the issue of same-sex marriage could be a major domestic social issue this year. Steve Schmidt addressed this issue to the rest of the GOP. One could ask: Who is this Steve Schmidt person? Schmidt is a GOP strategist. He was the manager for the campaign run for GOP nominee Senator John McCain of Arizona during the 2008 US Presidential Election. Schmidt has told the GOP to move a bit to the left. In that respect, Schmidt said to support same-sex marriage. This is according to an article on Boston.com. It explains that most Democrats including US President Barack Obama support civil unions over same-sex marriage. It adds that most within the GOP in elected office, including McCain support neither. The key word is "elected office." Remember, Schmidt has served as McCain’s campaign manager. Schmidt, who managed McCain’s campaign, told the GOP to support gay marriage. That is something that would probably not be well received by most elected Republicans. However, Schmidt gives an interesting argument. So far, it seems that Schmidt may have given a very solid argument in that respect. Schmidt’s argument states: Social norms and traditions change over time. In that respect, one could imply that the term of “conservatism” can be implied very differently. Regarding that, Schmidt does bring a solid case. At the same time, he adds that marriage in general brings responsibility to individuals. Some questions should be asked in that respect as well: How will Schmidt’s argument be received? Who will be the first to shoot down Schmidt’s argument? That aligns with the GOP ideology of personal responsibility. In this respect, Schmidt said that the GOP needs to be a bit more liberal. At the same time, Schmidt is seeking common ground with religious organizations. He explained the importance while at a meeting with the Log Cabin Republicans. However, there is one question that needs to be asked: How will Schmidt’s words be received? According to one entry on The Atlantic, what Schmidt is suggesting could bring difficult penalties on the GOP. The entry cites that it would be extremely difficult because there are a lot of obstacles in place. One should ask: How would the GOP overcome such obstacles? In this respect, Schmidt also warned that the GOP cannot afford to be branded as the “Religion Party.” He said that if that is the case, it could spell doom for the GOP in the future. Schmidt said that it hurts in a long term prospect. In a Washington Post article on that aspect, Schmidt implied that traditions and creeds are two different things. Overall, it would seem that Schmidt may be asking something extremely difficult of the Republican Party. One should also ask: Will there be any GOP fallout from this? Another should also ask: If so, what will the fallout be? In all respects, 2009 could be the year in which the topic of same-sex marriage ends up being the major one.