Bush & Gays

This morning on Meet the Press, Tim Russert asked President Bush some tough questions on Iraq and got a decent response from Bush on the AWOL issue, but he asked nothing about the Massachusetts ruling on gay marriage and whether Bush would support civil unions if not marriage for gays. Or if he'd really support an amendment to the Constitution.

The Iraq issues were clearly more important at this time, but I'm still disappointed that an issue which is going to be so front-and-center this year (especially if Kerry wins the nomination) wasn't raised at all.

What an opportunity. Missed.

Tangentially, over on Andrew Sullivan's site, some regulars are leaving because they're uncomfortable with Sullivan's position on gay marriage. In the words of one reader:

Good-bye, Andrew. I am going to leave you for now. I cannot take anymore articles about gays. This really grieves me because your site was a great read on all other subjects. So instructive. But gay issues have taken over and it's become unbearable.

Tough luck, buddy. Gay marriage is a 21st-century human rights issue and it shouldn't go away just because it makes some folks uncomfortable.

Other topics which have doubtless proved unbearable for bigots in the past:

• Freeing the slaves
• Giving women the right to vote
• Giving blacks the right to vote
• Giving blacks the right to attend the same schools as whites
• Giving interracial couples the right to marry
• Giving gays the right to serve in the military

Oh, we haven't exactly won that last won yet, either.