2014 VA Senate debate: on Civil Rights


Ed Gillespie: Maintain state same-sex marriage ban, but leave it to states

Gillespie reiterated his personal opposition to same-sex marriage, but he said it is a state issue: "I respect and love people for who they are," the Republican said. "I believe marriage is between one man and one woman. But I also believe that as a senator, it's not my role to legislate on that." Pressed, he said he would vote no if a statewide referendum came up to repeal the state's ban on same-sex marriage.

Warner switched his position to endorse gay marriage in March 2013.

Source: Politico.com weblog on 2014 Virginia Senate debate Jul 26, 2014

Mark Warner: Switched to supporting same-sex marriage in 2013

Gillespie reiterated his personal opposition to same-sex marriage, but he said it is a state issue: "I respect and love people for who they are," the Republican said. "I believe marriage is between one man and one woman. But I also believe that as a senator, it's not my role to legislate on that." Pressed, he said he would vote no if a statewide referendum came up to repeal the state's ban on same-sex marriage.

Warner switched his position to endorse gay marriage in March 2013.

Source: Politico.com weblog on 2014 Virginia Senate debate Jul 26, 2014

Ed Gillespie: Increase share of African-American vote in midterm elections

Gillespie, speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference, said: "We have to acknowledge the historic nature of [the election of] President Obama," especially for the African-American community, he said. But, Gillespie noted, going forward, Obama's "not going to be at the top of the ticket. That gives us the opportunity to make some headway."

He reminded the audience that for a time in the early 2000s, the GOP "increased its share of the black vote" slightly, though "it's kind of pathetic to be bragging" about going from 9% to 11% support. In the past two elections, however, the GOP has floundered with minority voters. "I think we can increase our share of the African-American vote in the midterm elections. I believe we definitely can, and certainly in the next presidential election," the Senate candidate said. "And we've got to."

Source: Politico.com coverage of CPAC and 2014 Virginia Senate race Mar 6, 2014

Robert Sarvis: Libertarian platform: allow same-sex couples to marry

Sarvis said he will run on a similar platform as last year, including small government, a reduction of spending, legalization of marijuana and allowing same-sex couples to marry. "Libertarians also want less intervention in foreign policy, so that will be something new for me to focus on," he said.
Source: Richmond Times-Dispatch on 2014 Virginia Senate race Jan 30, 2014

Ed Gillespie: OpEd: Lobbied for company that paid women 39% less than men

Did you, Virginia, know that Acme, a corporation that handed Ed Gillespie $3 million to lobby in Washington, has received over 50 warnings from the Environmental Protection Agency? Do you, Virginia, realize that Acme, the infamous corporation that made Ed Gillespie a millionaire, paid women 39% less than men? Well, the jobs that Acme haven't already outsourced to China. Ed Gillespie: betting against America--and women.
Source: The Federalist on 2014 Virginia Senate race Jan 16, 2014

Ed Gillespie: Marriage is the legal union of one man and one woman

As RNC chairman, Gillespie was a full-throated supporter of a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. He criticized Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) for not voting for the unconstitutional Defense of Marriage Act and told African American pastors that the Republican Party believes marriage "is the legal union of one man and one woman," so the nation "must pursue whatever policy is necessary to protect this institution, including a Federal Marriage Amendment to the United States Constitution." He endorsed using marriage as a campaign issue in 2012 and observed in 2013, "I don't think you would ever see the Republican Party platform say we're in favor of same sex marriage."

Still, Gillespie has said that it is unfair to call the GOP anti-LGBT because while most Republicans support marriage inequality, many "are also for the benefits of marriage in the legal system that are afforded protections like, for example, hospital visitation rights or survivorship benefits."

Source: ThinkProgress.org on 2014 Virginia Senate race Jan 16, 2014

  • The above quotations are from 2014 Virginia Senate debates.
  • Click here for definitions & background information on Civil Rights.
  • Click here for other issues (main summary page).
  • Click here for more quotes by Mark Warner on Civil Rights.
  • Click here for more quotes by Bob McDonnell on Civil Rights.
Candidates and political leaders on Civil Rights:

Retired Senate as of Jan. 2015:
GA:Chambliss(R)
IA:Harkin(D)
MI:Levin(D)
MT:Baucus(D)
NE:Johanns(R)
OK:Coburn(R)
SD:Johnson(D)
WV:Rockefeller(D)

Resigned from 113th House:
AL-1:Jo Bonner(R)
FL-19:Trey Radel(R)
LA-5:Rod Alexander(R)
MA-5:Ed Markey(D)
MO-9:Jo Ann Emerson(R)
NC-12:Melvin Watt(D)
SC-1:Tim Scott(R) 		Retired House to run for Senate or Governor:
AR-4:Tom Cotton(R)
GA-1:Jack Kingston(R)
GA-10:Paul Broun(R)
GA-11:Phil Gingrey(R)
HI-1:Colleen Hanabusa(D)
IA-1:Bruce Braley(D)
LA-6:Bill Cassidy(R)
ME-2:Mike Michaud(D)
MI-14:Gary Peters(D)
MT-0:Steve Daines(R)
OK-5:James Lankford(R)
PA-13:Allyson Schwartz(D)
TX-36:Steve Stockman(R)
WV-2:Shelley Capito(R) 		Retired House as of Jan. 2015:
AL-6:Spencer Bachus(R)
AR-2:Tim Griffin(R)
CA-11:George Miller(D)
CA-25:Howard McKeon(R)
CA-33:Henry Waxman(D)
CA-45:John Campbell(R)
IA-3:Tom Latham(R)
MN-6:Michele Bachmann(R)
NC-6:Howard Coble(R)
NC-7:Mike McIntyre(D)
NJ-3:Jon Runyan(R)
NY-4:Carolyn McCarthy(D)
NY-21:Bill Owens(D)
PA-6:Jim Gerlach(R)
UT-4:Jim Matheson(D)
VA-8:Jim Moran(D)
VA-10:Frank Wolf(R)
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Page last updated: Dec 07, 2018