Republican Senate candidate Matt Bevin argued the recent federal court ruling in Kentucky regarding gay marriages performed in other states is redefining the institution.But the Tea Party backed challenger to incumbent Sen. Mitch McConnell is bristling at suggestions he said legalizing same-sex unions may potentially allow a parent to wed their child.Asked about District Judge John G. Heyburn's ruling that Kentucky must recognize out-of-state same-sex marriages, Bevin told radio show host Janet Meffered that "judicial activism" is undermining the U.S. Constitution, American civil liberties and the sovereignty of states."There is no way that one individual, regardless of what precedent they're trying to use or what they're trying to point to as an argument for doing so. There's no reason whatsoever that one person can disregard the entire will of 4 million citizens of a sovereign state," he said.Kentucky voters overwhelmingly supported banning same-sex marriage back in 2004.Bevin was later asked how he would defend traditional marriage if elected. He said it isn't the role of government to define the institution, but suggested the ruling is creating a slippery slope.From The Janet Meffered Show: "If it’s all right to have same-sex marriages, why not define a marriage—because at the end of the day a lot of this ends up being taxes and who can visit who in the hospital and there’s other repercussions and things that come with it—so a person may want to define themselves as being married to one of their children so that they can then in fact pass on certain things to that child financially and otherwise. Where do you draw the line? And if in fact a person can arbitrarily draw it here why not could someone else draw it arbitrarily somewhere else? There needs to be rule of law. Marriage has for millennia been defined as between a man and a woman universally. And it's something we should recognize."The Bevin campaign slammed national news reports that said the Tea Party backed candidate was equating gay marriage to incest."This is a gross misrepresentation of what Matt said," Bevin campaign spokeswoman Rachel Semmel told WFPL. "He sees no comparison between gay marriage and incest. He was discussing the implications of the legal rights related to this issue such as hospital visitations and benefits. To imply otherwise is ridiculous."UPDATE 9:59 a.m.:Fairness Campaign Director Chris Hartman ripped the Bevin campaign's explanation, saying it is clear the Republican Senate candidate is equating gay marriages to incest."If Mr. Bevin wants others to view him as he does himself—as a viable candidate for one of the highest federal elected offices in our commonwealth—he'll have to quit insulting Kentuckians' intelligence. Mr. Bevin's promotion of incestuous marriages as comparable to same-gender ones helps no one but late-night talk show hosts, who feed on this type of fodder to stereotype Kentuckians as backwoods and uneducated. Bravo, Mr. Bevin, for representing Kentucky in the poorest, most ignorant light possible."
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