Read Murkowski’s full statement here.
Gay groups on both sides of the political isle praised the Alaskan senator today. Log Cabin Republicans Executive Director Gregory T. Angelo called Murkowski’s statement courageous.
“This is courage,” Angelo said on the news. “Senator Murkowski could have waited for the pending Supreme Court rulings on the landmark cases being decided this month, but instead chose to stand up for what’s right without wasting another day. I encourage everyone to read Senator Murkowski’s full op-ed about why, as a committed Republican, she felt the need to support civil marriage equality for all.”
“She articulates perfectly the inherent compatibility between a conservative, limited government worldview and support for marriage equality,” Angelo continued. “Also, the Senator’s statements show the power everyday gay Americans have when they live their lives with honesty and pride – that’s courage, too. By spending time with a loving military family headed by two moms, the Senator was able to see what more and more Americans are seeing: that, gay or straight, a commitment to marriage and family are what family values are all about.”
Marc Soloman, national campaign director for Freedom to Marry, said Republican ideals of family and freedom fit within the marriage equality narrative.
“Senator Murkowski joins the majority of US senators taking a stand for equal treatment under the law on one of the most important bonds in our society: marriage,” Soloman said today. “And as the third GOP senator to announce support for marriage this year, she shows that the conservative tenets of freedom and family are perfectly in line with the freedom to marry. With a solid majority of the American public supporting same-sex couples’ right to marry, along with a majority of Republican voters under 50, we’ll see more and more leaders like Senator Murkowski — from all parties and all states across the nation — moving to be in line with the electorate and on the right side of history.”
Who do you think will be the next high-profile Republican to endorse marriage equality?
Top photo: U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) (official photo)