A Matter of Conscience

The Vermont House of Representatives votes today on a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry. The Senate has already passed the bill and the Governor has already promised to veto it. The bill is expected to pass the House by a large margin and the only question seems to be whether it will have the 100 votes (2/3rds) necessary to withstand the Governor's veto.

As a conservative who supports gay marriage (no, that's not an oxymoron), I have no qualms about the legislation and, since Vermont was at the vanguard of establishing Civil Unions, I suppose it's only fitting that we become the first state to establish the right of gay marriage.

This, however, is amusing:

Evans, a Democrat from Essex, is a member of her Catholic parish council. She is also a justice of the peace who has performed more than 100 civil union ceremonies for same-sex couples. “I have done a lot of soul-searching,” she said. “It’s very hard.” When her name is called today, though, she will vote against same-sex marriage. “I still look at the definition of marriage as traditional. If there is a vote to override a gubernatorial veto, however, Evans said she will vote for it. The Democratic caucus is firm about sticking together to challenge the governor, she said.

So let me understand this: you and the governor are in agreement that marriage should be "traditional" and you are going to vote that way when your name is called. However, if the bill passes as expected and the Governor exercises his right to veto it, you'll join a vote to override the veto, in essence passing a bill you voted against in the first place. And why? Because even though you agree with him on this issue, he's a big, bad Republican and, well, us Democrats got to stick together, you know?

Nice. I guess some things don't require any soul-searching at all, do they?