Statement from Rep. Matt Shea on domestic partnership, same-sex marriage proposals introduced in Olympia
Rep. Matt Shea, R-Mead, issued the following statement in response to the introduction of legislation that would broaden domestic partnership rights in Washington state (SB 5688 and HB 1727), and a second measure (SB 5674) that would extend the right to marry to homosexual couples:
“We must protect the historic and societal institution of marriage, and make clear that only a marriage between a man and a woman is valid and recognized in Washington.
“I have sponsored a proposed constitutional amendment (HJR 4204) that would define marriage in our state as the union of one man and one woman.
“I think this is important because more than 75 percent of Americans support that definition of marriage. Thirty states have passed language defining marriage between a man and a woman in their constitutions. Typically, the amendments were approved with overwhelming majorities.
“Ours is a marriage-based culture. It’s been part of human history for 6,000 years. And when our country was founded, we made a statement that the union of one man and one woman would be the cultural basis of our society.
“People of different faiths, and people of no particular faith, share that belief, and they believe that children do best when raised by a mother and a father.”
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