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Dozens of GOP Leaders Declare Solidarity With Those Who Want To See Homosexuality Outlawed

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on December 15, 2010 - 10:21am

Last week when Jeremy Hooper discovered that the Family Research Council was planning to roll out a campaign fighting back against the Southern Poverty Law Center's designation of the organization as an anti-gay hate group, we noted that FRC was asking people to sign on to the campaign to "stand in solidarity with Family Research Council, American Family Association, Concerned Women of America, National Organization for Marriage, Liberty Counsel and other pro-family organizations that are working to protect and promote natural marriage and family."

By doing so, we pointed out, any one who added their name was essentially declaring that they stood shoulder-to-shoulder with groups that proclaim:

Today, FRC announced that it was running this open letter [PDF] in both Politico and The Washington Examiner and that the effort had the support of dozens of Republican members of Congress and conservative leaders:

Family Research Council (FRC) announced the placement of a full-page open letter in today's print editions of Politico and the Washington Examiner responding to the Southern Poverty Law Center's (SPLC) recent attacks on FRC and other groups.

SPLC has targeted FRC and other organizations that uphold Judeo-Christian moral views, including marriage as the union of a man and a woman. The open letter, signed by more than 150 organizational leaders, Members of Congress and other elected officials, calls for a "vigorous but responsible exercise of the First Amendment rights of free speech and religious liberty that are the birthright of all Americans."

The open letter was signed by many current and former elected and government officials including Speaker-designate John Boehner, Majority Leader-elect Eric Cantor, U.S. Reps Mike Pence (R-IN), Michele Bachmann (R-MN), John Carter (R-TX), John Fleming (R-LA,) Trent Franks (R-AZ), Louie Gohmert (R-TX,) Gregg Harper (R-MS), Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), Jim Jordan (R-OH), Steve King (R-IA,) Don Manzullo (R-IL), Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Joe Pitts (R-PA), Peter Roskam (R-LA), Lamar Smith (R-TX,) Steve Scalise (R-LA,) Fred Upton (R-MI), U.S. Senators Jim DeMint (R-SC), Jim Inhofe (R-OK,) David Vitter (R-LA), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Sam Brownback (Gov.-elect, Kansas), Governor Bobby Jindal, former Governor Mike Huckabee, Governor Tim Pawlenty, former Senator Rick Santorum, Edwin Meese III, former Attorney General of the United States, and Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli.

For the record, here is the complete list of leaders who have publicly declared their solidarity with SPLC-designated anti-gay hate groups who want to see gays barred from serving in public office and homosexuality made illegal: 

Alaska Family Council Jim Minnery - President
American College of Pediatricians Tom Benton, MD - President
American Conservative Union Foundation Cleta Mitchell - Chairman
American Decency Association Bill Johnson - President
American Family Association Tim Wildmon - President
American Family Association of Pennsylvania Diane Gramley - President
American Principles Project Andresen Blom - Executive Director
American Values Gary Bauer - President
Association of Maryland Families Derek McCoy - President
Best-Selling Author and Host of Morning in America Dr. William J. Bennett
Calvary Chapel Jack Hibbs - Senior Pastor
Cardinal Newman Society Patrick Reilly - President
Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights Bill Donohue - President
CCV of Indiana PAC Joseph Sergio, Ph.D - Chairman
Center for Arizona Policy Cathi Herrod - President
Center for Law and Social Strategy Mark Spengler - Executive Director
Center for Security Policy Frank Gaffney - President and CEO
Center for Urban Renewal and Education Star Parker - President
Christian Civic League of Maine Carroll Conley - Executive Director
Christian Medical Association David Stevens - CEO
CitizenLink Tom Minnery - Senior Vice President, Public Policy
Citizens for Community Values Phil Burress - President
Citizens for Community Values of Indiana Patrick Mangan - Executive Director
CNSNews.com Chris Johnson - News Correspondant
CNSNews.com Eric Scheiner - Senior Video Producer
Coalition for Marriage and FamilyTom Shields - Chairman
Colorado Family Action Jessica Haverkate - Director
Committee for Justice Curt Levey - Executive Director
Concerned Citizens for Family Values of Connecticut Ray Kastner - President
Concerned Women For America Penny Nance - CEO
Concerned Women for American Wendy Wright - President
ConservativeHQ.com Richard Viguerie - Chairman
Coral Ridge Ministries Robert Knight - Senior Writer
Coral Ridge Ministries Hector Padron - Executive Vice President
Cornerstone Action, NH Kevin Smith - Executive Director
Cornerstone Family Council of ID Julie Lynde - Executive Director
Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation E. Calvin Beisner, Ph.D. - National Spokesman
Delaware Family Policy Council Nicole Theis - Executive Director
Design4 Marketing Communications Clint Cline - President
Eagle Forum Phyllis Schlafly - President
Ethics and Public Policy Center Rick Santorum - Senior Fellow
Faith Christian Fellowship Church The Rev Dr. R. Edgar Bonniwell - Senior Pastor
Family Action Council of Tennessee David Fowler - President
Family First (Nebraska FPC) Dave Bydalek Bydalek - Executive Director
Family Institute of Connecticut Peter Wolfgang - Executive Director
Florida Family Policy Counci lJohn Stemberger - President and General Counsel
ForAmerica David Bozell - Executive Director
Generals International Cindy Jacobs - President
Illinois Family Institute David Smith - Executive Director
Iowa Family Policy Center Chuck Hurley - President
Jews Offering New Alternatives to Homosexuality Elaine Silodor Berk - Director
Judicial Action Group Phillip Jauregui - President
Kansas Sam Brownback - Governor-elect
Kansas Family Policy Council Donna Lippoldt - Executive Director
Kingdom Warriors Ministry William Boykin - LTG(R) USArmy
Landmark Legal Foundation Mark Levin - President
Leadership Institute Morton Blackwell - President
Let Freedom Ring Colin Hanna - President
Liberty Center for Law and Policy Mandi Campbell - Legal Director
Liberty Counsel Matt Barber - Director of Cultural Affairs
Liberty Counsel Mathew Staver - Founder and Chairman
Liberty Institute Kelly Shackelford
Louisiana Bobby Jindal - Governor
Louisiana Family Forum Action Gene Mills - President
Massachusetts Family Institute Kris Mineau - President
Media Research Center Matthew Balan - news analyst
Media Research CenterL. Brent Bozell - Founder and President
Media Research Center Kyle Drennen - News Analyst
Media Research Center Matthew Hadro
Mike Huckabee - Former Governor, TV/ Radio Commentator
Minnesota Family Council David Eaton - Chairman
Minnesota Family Council John Helmberger - Chief Executive Officer
Mission America Linda Harvey - President
Missouri Family Policy Council Joe Ortwerth - Executive Director
National Organization for Marriage Brian Brown - President
National Organization for Marriage Maggie Gallagher - Chairman
National Organization for Marriage - Rhode Island Christopher Plante - Executive Director
National Review Rich Lowry - Editor
Nationally Syndicated Radio Talkshow Host Janet Parshall
Nevada Concerned Citizens Richard Ziser - Director
New Jersey Family First Len Deo - Founder & President
New Yorker's Family Research Foundation Rev. Tom Stiles
New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms Rev. Jason McGuire
North Dakota Family Alliance Tom Freier - Executive Director
Ohio Faith and Freedom Coalition Ken Blackwell - Chairman
Priests For LifeFr. Frank Pavone - National Director
Prison Fellowship and The Colson Center for Christian Worldview Chuck Colson - Founder
Public Service Research Foundation David Denholm - President
Radio America Franklin Raff - Sr. Executive Producer
Rappahannock Ventures WillIam Walton - Chairman
ReAL Action Rick Tyler - Chairman
RedState Erick-Woods Erickson - Editor
Renewing American Leadership Jim Garlow - Chairman
Republican Party of Louisiana Roger Villere, Jr. - Chairman
Restore America David Crowe - President
Retired Rensselaer Broekhuizen - Pastor
RightMarch.com William Greene - President
Shirley & Banister Public Affairs Diana Banister - Vice President
Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission Dr. Richard Land - President
State of Minnesota Tim Pawlenty - Governor
The American Spectator Alfred Regnery - Publisher
The Coalition of Conscience Michael Brown, Ph.D. - Director
The Diana Davis Spencer Foundation Abby Moffat - Vice President and COO
The Family Foundation of VirginiaVictoria Cobb - President
The Family Policy Council of WVJeremiah Dys, Esq. - President and General Counsel
The National Legal Foundation Steven Fitschen - President
THE New Voice, Inc.Herman Cain - CEO and President
The Oak InititativeRick Joyner - President
The Washington Examiner Mark Tapscott - Editorial Page Editor
TheCall Louis Engle - President
Tradition, Family, Property, Inc.C. Preston Noell III - President
Traditional Values Coalition Jody Hutchens - Regional Director
Traditional Values Coalition Andrea Lafferty - Executive Director
U.S. Congress Senator David Vitter - (R-LA)
U.S. Congress Senator Roger Wicker - (R-MS)
U.S. House of Representatives Congresswoman Michele Bachmann - (R-MN)
U.S. House of Representatives Speaker-designate John Boehner - (R-OH)
U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader-elect Eric Cantor - (R-VA)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman John Fleming, M.D. - (R-LA)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Trent Franks - (R-AZ)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Louie Gohmert - (R-TX)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Jeb Henserling - (R-TX)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Jim Jordan - (R-OH)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Steve King - (R-IA)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Donald Manzullo - (R-IL)
U.S. House of Representative sCongressman Kevin McCarthy - (R-CA)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman-elect Alan Nunnelee - (R-MS)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Mike Pence - (R-IN)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Joe Pitts - (R-PA)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Peter Roskam - (R-IL)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Steve Scalise - (R-LA)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Lamar Smith - (R-TX)
U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Fred Upton - (R-MI)
United States SenateJim DeMint - Senator
Virginia Ken Cuccinelli - Attorney General
Western Center for Journalism Floyd Brown - President
Wisconsin Family Action Julaine Appling - President
WMtek Corp. Dan Pennell - CEO
WND.com Joseph Farah - Chief Executive Officer

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Everything You Need To Know About The FRC

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on November 3, 2010 - 11:07am

As we noted the other day, the Family Research Council had run ads against Rep. Joseph Cao in Louisiana because, after having endorsed him in 2008, FRC decided that Cao was insufficiently anti-gay.

Last night, Cao lost his re-election bid.

Contrast that with another Louisiana politician, Sen. David Vitter, who admitted to involvement with prostitutes.  What does FRC have to say about that?

All is forgiven:

“He came forward, took responsibilities for his actions, acknowledged it, asked for forgiveness, has remained consistent in his positions and the voters in Louisiana have responded positively to that,” Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, told The Ballot Box.

“He had enough time between when this event became public and when he had to stand for reelection, he was able to convince voters that he had changed,” added Perkins. “People make mistakes, but its whether or not we recognize we made a mistake” that’s the issue.

...

Perkins said he and Vitter spoke after D.C. Madam news broke.

“He left me convinced that I should give him another chance,” he said. “He certainly has not changed his positions. If anything, he’s gotten stronger and more resolute in his firm conservative stance.”

So let that be a lesson to other Republican leaders: if you support things like Hate Crimes legislation or the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, FRC will attack you for helping to "advance the radical social agendas of homosexual activists."

But if you are a "family values" conservative who frequents prostitutes and says you are sorry once you get caught, FRC won't hold it against you.

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Palling Around With Conspiracy Theorists

Submitted by Anonymous on July 13, 2010 - 4:48pm

 

Senator David Vitter can’t seem to keep himself out of trouble this week. First he employs a convicted domestic abuser, with nary a comment from right wing moralists; now he’s lending the weight of his office to a completely unhinged conspiracy theory. At a town hall event with his Louisiana constituents, reports ultra-conservative blog WorldNetDaily, Senator Vitter encouraged conservative groups to challenge President Obama’s citizenship in court, saying he didn’t trust the “mainstream media” to verify that Obama was, in fact, born in Hawaii:

"I support conservative legal organizations and others who would bring that to court," Vitter said, according to an Associated Press report citing a video of the event.

Vitter becomes just the latest high-profile leader, and the first U.S. senator, to take such a strong stand on the issue.

It's also significant that the AP reported on Vitter's comments. The news wire has stated the president's "birth certificate" has been made public even though the image of the document posted online actually is a "certification of live birth," which was available to those not born in Hawaii.

 

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For CWA, politics trumps women’s rights

Submitted by Anonymous on July 12, 2010 - 4:02pm

Senator Vitter (R-LA) has been in trouble lately for employing a convicted domestic abuser as an aide, even making him a point-man on women’s issues. One would hope that conservative women’s groups such as Concerned Women for America would offer the Senator some kind of moral reprimand. Unsurprisingly, though, these groups have failed to comment. As TPM reports,

This is not the first time Vitter has put conservative women's groups in a tough spot. As with the prostitute controversy, these organizations can't defend or condone Vitter or his actions. But they are supportive of his politics and don't want to damage his re-election prospects or help elect a Democrat -- even if that Democrat has a personal life more in keeping with the values the women's organizations espouse.

Concerned Women for America is against equal rights for gays because, supposedly, homosexual relationships lead to domestic abuse. But they can’t seem to work up a moral fervor about a Republican Senator putting a convicted abuser in charge of women’s issues. As Oscar Wilde once said, "Morality is the attitude we adopt toward people whom we personally dislike." It sounds like CWA still likes Senator Vitter, despite his appalling record on women’s issues.

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Does David Vitter Pass Perkins' "Values" Test?

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on April 1, 2010 - 12:13pm

Following up on the last post regarding Tony Perkins' declaration that social conservatives should stop donating money to the Republican National Committee and instead "give directly to candidates who you know reflect your values," the Louisiana Democratic Party asks a good question:

The Louisiana Democratic Party asked Perkins if he believes conservatives should contribute to David Vitter’s re-election campaign.

“If Tony Perkins thinks his followers shouldn’t give money to the RNC because they held a fundraiser at a sleazy, but legal, strip club, then it’s hard to imagine that he would condone contributing to the campaign of a Senator who has admitted breaking the law, adultery and engaging the services of prostitutes,” said Louisiana Democratic Party spokesman Kevin Franck.

If people donate to FRC's PAC instead of the RNC, would their donations end up going to help re-elect Sen. David Vitter, even though he has admitted to engaging the service of prostitutes, a revelation which Perkins called "very disappointing" back in 2007?

For a while, there was even talk that Perkins was considering challenging Vitter in the GOP primary, but he ultimately passed, announcing that "I support Senator David Vitter’s bid for reelection in 2010."

Since then Perkins and Vitter have become regular pals, appearing together on FRC's radio program and webcasts, and even at a townhall event in Louisiana.

Perkins says right-wing activists should stop donating to the RNC because the RNC does not reflect their values and should instead donate to the "FRC Action PAC which can support candidates who will advance faith, family and freedom!" 

Candidates like David Vitter?

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Behold Today's Religious Right and Its Congressional Allies

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on March 18, 2010 - 2:23pm

The other day we noted that it was seemingly impossible for any Religious Right figure to be deemed so radical that Republican members of Congress would decline to appear at events with them, highlighting the fact that the American Family Association's militantly anti-gay Director of Issue Analysis for Government and Public Policy, Bryan Fischer, was being featured in a Family Research Council hosted health care webcast along with Rep. Tom Price, (R-GA), Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN), and Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN).

The event aired earlier this week and, as it turned out, Fischer wasn't even the most radical person involved as that honor went to Virginia Delegate Bob Marshall:

Last month, Marshall made news by declaring during an anti-Planned Parenthood press conference that disabled children are God's punishment for abortion and then asserting that he had never said anything of the sort.

I didn't bother grabbing any of the video of Fischer or Marshall because, frankly, they didn't say anything particularly interesting, with both insisting that health care reform is unconstitutional.

But what was interesting was the fact that Fischer and Marshall were featured together in the webcast and their appearance was sandwiched in between Rep. Mike Pence and Sen. David Vitter.

In short, today's conservative movement consists of right-wing leaders who think gays should be treated like criminals and that God punishes women who've had abortions with disabled children ... and high-profile Republican members of Congress.

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Scarborough Merging Tea Party and Religious Right Activism, Hosting Conference Calls With GOP Leaders

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on March 1, 2010 - 5:00pm

Vision America hadn't sent out its "Rick Scarbough Report" in several weeks, but today the most recent email showed up in my inbox and it is carrying an exciting new addition to its name:

In the latest update, Scarborough informs us that his appearance at the National Tea Party Convention was a massive success and that he intends to merge Tea Party activism with his standard Religious Right activism, changing the TEA Party's "Taxed Enough Already" acronym to "Truth Exalts America" and launching a "Patriot Pastors' Tea Party" with the support of David Barton.

Also, he's been regularly hosting weekly conference calls with Republican members of Congress including Michele Bachmann, Steve King, Randy Forbes, Jim DeMint, David Vitter, and others.

VISION AMERICA AT THE FIRST NATIONAL TEA PARTY CONVENTION

On February 4-7, I attended the First National Tea Party Convention at the Gaylord Hotel in Nashville, which brought together over 600 leaders of various local Tea Party groups. These are the folks who've wrought an overnight revolution and I was honored to be with them.

The Convention included speeches by former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, Roy Moore, former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, and a host of other national leaders.

On the first evening, I spoke to the Convention and led a prayer service. The following day, I conducted an hour-long breakout session on "Why Pastors and Churches Must Engage In Politics." Every chair in the room was filled and people stood around the walls in a hall estimated to hold 300.

To say our message was well received is somewhat of an understatement. The press reported that audience cheered as I explained how this nation has fallen as we have drifted further and further from our Judeo-Christian roots.

We made many friends and allies. I believe the seeds we sowed in Nashville will bear fruit in the months ahead, resulting in a growing alliance between Vision America and the Tea Party movement.

On Saturday morning, I had a closed-door meeting with 16 pastors and several laymen. Some traveled hundreds of miles to be with us. We discussed ways in which pastors can become more involved with local Tea Parties, including organizing their own Tea Party. Former syndicated columnist Don Feder talked about effective communications techniques.

LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE CALLS

As we have for the past year, we are continuing to do our Thursday afternoon leadership, networking conference calls (3pm Central Time).

Last week, we heard from Congressman Steve King (Iowa) on mega-deficits, taxes and looming fiscal calamity. This week's presenter was Congressman Randy Forbes (Virginia), founder and chair of the Congressional Prayer Caucus, which leads its members in national efforts to protect prayer and America's spiritual heritage. Rep. Forbes spoke on the work of his Prayer Caucus and the sham of a health-care "compromise."

Past presenters have included Senators Jim DeMint (S. Carolina) and David Vitter (La.), Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, and Congressmen Louie Gohmert (TX),Lamar Smith (TX), and syndicated columnist Michelle Malkin.

...

PATRIOT PASTORS TEA PARTY?

More than 60 pastors have been involved in an effort to organize a Patriot Pastors' Tea Party, just for Pastors. I have been conducting weekly conference calls for the past three weeks to explore the possibility of having a Patriot Pastors' Tea Party in San Antonio, at the Alamo, on July 7th. We have adopted the acronym Truth Exalts America for our TEA Party.

On the last call, the pastors heard from Wallbuilders' David Barton on the role pastors (the "Black-Robed Regiment") played in generating popular support for the American Revolution.

I promise to keep you informed of our progress on all of the foregoing, and earnestly solicit your prayers and support.

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Perkins and Vitter Tag-Team The Town Hall

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on September 2, 2009 - 9:22am

Last week we posted on the toolkit that the Family Research Council was distributing to its members urging them to organize town hall events in opposition to healthcare reform in their local churches.

Well, it looks like this effort has gotten off to a fast start, thanks to Sen. David Vitter, who recently participated in one of these events which was organized by and featured FRC President Tony Perkins:

On his Facebook page, David Vitter just thanked Family Research Council President and former Louisiana legislator Tony Perkins for hosting a Vitter event in a church last night.

"Last night I participated in a community wide town hall in Greenwell Springs to discuss health care reform. Was a great meeting. Special thanks to Tony Perkins and a group of local churches who partnered together to host a panel discussion on health… care, allowing over 800 in attendance to participate in this important topic."

Several videos from the event have now appeared on YouTube and they show the event to be every bit as enlightening as we would expect.

Right off the bat, after Sen. Vitter thanks "Tony," he says that he is particularly delighted to finally participate in a church-based discussion about healthcare and hopes to have several more such faith-based discussions around the state.

Then came questions from the audience about the entire effort just being a power-grab by Obama, as well as questions about abortion and conscience protections.  At no point did Vitter try to correct the audience's misunderstandings and, instead, worked to reinforce them.

Then came this fascinating statement from an audience member in which he claimed that Vladimir Putin had recently written a column for Pravda urging President Obama not to try Marxism because it doesn't work before declaring that he was one of those uninsured that politicians keep talking about, but that he was uninsured by choice.  It seems that the audience member doesn't trust medicine and doesn't see a need for it and that what is really needed is to "get Americans weaned off of the medical care system all together" ... at which point the audience bursts into applause before the speaker goes on the cite a doctor in New Orleans who has been able to cure every cancer patient he has seen in the last twenty years in just three weeks by simply using Vitamin C:

This final video starts out with an attack on Van Jones, which is reinforced by Sen. Vitter who says that all of Obama's czars are unconstitutional. The next question is about the past writings of Obama's science adviser John Holdren, which has been a topic of right-wing outrage for several weeks now. Around the 4:00 mark of this video, Perkins' voice pops up in response to the Holdren question where he decries the "influence of authors who put these crazy ideas out there and are embraced by liberal politicians" and saying that he has "no dobut" that healthcare reform would lead to forced sterilization:

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David Vitter: Bringing the GOP Back to its "Core Conservative Values"

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on July 29, 2009 - 12:32pm

In yesterday's Round-Up I mentioned that  Sen. George Voinovich has a theory about why the Republican Party has been struggling lately - too many Southerners:

Too many conservative senators like Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) and Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) are to blame for the GOP's downfall, one of their retiring Republican colleagues complained Monday.

"We got too many Jim DeMints and Tom Coburns," Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio) told the Columbus Dispatch. "It's the southerners."

Voinovich, a native Clevelander who retires after the 2010 election, continued after the southern elements of the GOP.

"They get on TV and go 'errrr, errrrr,'" he said. "People hear them and say, 'These people, they're southerners. The party's being taken over by southerners. What they hell they got to do with Ohio?'"

So today, one of the GOP's Southern senators decided to speak-up, touting their role in ensuring that the Republican Party remains firmly rooted in the conservative, family values that made America great.

Guess which one:

Sen. David Vitter disagreed Wednesday with criticism that Southern Republicans are ruining the party and said a return to conservative values is the best way to restore political power.

"I'm on the side of conservatives getting back to core conservative values," said Mr. Vitter, Louisiana Republican and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "There are a lot of us from the South who hold those value, which I think the party is supposed to be about. We strayed from them in the past few years, and that's why we performed so badly in the national elections."

If "getting back to core conservative values" includes "violating the sanctity of your marriage" (and recently, it sure seems as if it does) then Vitter is the perfect man to be leading this effort.

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The Time Has Come For Pointless Grandstanding

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on May 8, 2009 - 3:35pm

Times are tough for the Republican Party at the moment.  Having come off a string of electoral losses, the GOP is currently in the midst of an all-out effort to re-brand itself as a viable political force in which Democrats now control nearly every branch of government.

So how do they go about showing that they have new ideas and a vision that can move the country forward? 

Apparently by re-introducing constitutional amendments that have repeatedly failed to go anywhere in the past. 

First up, Rep. Paul Broun:

U.S. Rep. Paul Broun will re-introduce a Constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in the wake of recent votes and court decisions legalizing the practice in at least five states.

The amendment is a sign that battles over whether to allow same-sex marriage will continue to rage, even as state courts and legislatures overturn bans.

...

Up until a year ago, Broun had said that he opposed gay marriage, but also opposed amending the U.S. Constitution on the grounds that state constitutions are easier to change.

Sen. David Vitter also seems to be getting in on the "back to the future" re-branding effort with his own throwback amendment:

Following a three year absence, a flag protection amendment has returned to the United States Senate. On May 6, U.S. Senator David Vitter [R-LA], along with 17 colleagues, introduced Senate Joint Resolution 15, a constitutional amendment to prohibit the physical desecration of the flag of the United States. The language of the amendment is concise: "The Congress shall have power to prohibit the physical desecration of the flag of the United States."

And people say the GOP is bereft of new ideas.

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