WASHINGTON — President Bush on Tuesday called on Americans to "defend the sanctity of marriage," and tiptoed toward suggesting a constitutional amendment to block gay marriage but stopped just short of endorsing one.
Conservative groups, which form a key part of the president's political base, were pleased with the high-profile attention he gave the issue, but some said it was time for Bush to directly call on Congress to pass a constitutional amendment.
Instead, they heard murky, carefully parsed language.
"On an issue of such great consequence, the people's voice must be heard," Bush said. "If judges insist on forcing their arbitrary will upon the people, the only alternative left to the people would be the constitutional process."
Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, an organization based in Washington and Holland, Mich., that promotes marriage, said Bush's comments were too noncommittal.
"The president should immediately call upon Congress to pass an amendment this year to the Constitution codifying into law what history and nature has taught us: Marriage is between a man and a woman," Perkins said.
Sandy Rios, president of Concerned Women for America, a conservative public policy group, applauded the president's comments but emphasized that her group and others would hold him accountable for leading the nation to block legalization of same-sex marriage.
"Nothing less than bold action will do," Rios said. "He needs to use his God-given platform to lead the American people. He needs to take a strong stand in fighting this battle at home."
Gay rights activists expressed relief that the president did not expressly propose a constitutional amendment, which they said would be unprecedented and wrong.
"In more than 200 hundred years of American history, the Constitution has never [been] amended to deny basic rights and responsibilities," said Cheryl Jacques, president of Human Rights Campaign, a Washington advocacy group.
Such a move, she said, would deny gay couples such fundamental rights as the ability to visit a partner in the hospital or the protection of Social Security survivor benefits.
A decision in November by the Supreme Judicial Court in Massachusetts is fueling the conservative groups' call for a constitutional amendment. The court called on state lawmakers to devise a plan within six months to allow same-sex marriages in the state.
