Gronstal and Kibbie REFUSE to let you vote!
By Bryan English
2/11/10 Pleasant Hill, IA
Standing between Iowa citizens and their right to vote on the Iowa Marriage Amendment, Senate Democrats this week obstructed efforts to take action on the amendment ahead of an important legislative deadline. Bills that fail to move out of committee before the end of “funnel week,” are generally no longer considered viable for the remainder of the session. While Senate rules provide options for leadership to take action on items like the Iowa Marriage Amendment after the funnel, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal has publicly offered to risk his majority status, and his next election, to keep Iowans from having an opportunity to vote.
The Republican effort to let Iowans vote on the Iowa Marriage Amendment this week was lead by Senator David Johnson of Ocheyedan. By inviting the other Senators to sign a discharge petition, Johnson attempted to bring the Iowa Marriage Amendment to the floor for a vote over Gronstal’s objection. The petition quickly gained the signatures of all 18 Republican Senators, along with that of Democrat Senator Tom Hanckock. As the week wore on, other Democrats began to respond to calls and e-mails from their constituents. As the funnel closed, Democrat Senators Black, Kreiman, Olive, and Seng had added their names to the list. Ultimately, Johnson fell three Members short of the 26 signatures he needed.
IFPC Action spokesman Bryan English responded to the end of this week’s activity in the Iowa Senate by saying, “Thanks to the hard work of Senator Johnson and his Republican colleagues, we now have a record of who really cares about marriage, and who understands that the Supreme Court is not the lawmaking body of this state. It is blatantly apparent that in the environment created by last April’s Iowa Supreme Court opinion, Senate Democrats are not qualified to remain the majority party.” According to English, “Iowans who support real marriage are not going away, and if Mike Gronstal would like them to focus their energy on removing him from the majority, they will be happy to comply.”
One Member of the Iowa Senate whose signature was glaringly absent from the discharge petition was Senate President Jack Kibbie of Emmetsburg. Senator Kibbie, who has on several occasions publicly declared his support for real marriage, and his willingness to vote for the Iowa Marriage Amendment, refused to take even the smallest action to keep his promises. This week, Senator Kibbie chose to side with Mike Gronstal and the homosexual lobby over the wishes of his constituents, and an opportunity to preserve the only definition of marriage, by refusing to sign the petition.
Commenting on the larger implications of the events of the week, English said, “The battle raging in Iowa over the issue of marriage is a political reflection of a larger spiritual war that began with original sin. Anyone who has read the Bible knows that while individual battles will continue, the ultimate outcome of the spiritual war was settled long ago by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.” He concluded by saying, “When the current political debate over marriage is viewed through the lens of eternity, politicians like Mike Gronstal and Jack Kibbie need to understand that they’ve already lost.”
CONTACT:
Bryan M. English
Iowa Family Policy Center / Iowa Family Policy Center ACTION
Phone (515) 263-3495
Fax (515) 263-3498
Cell (515) 210-7475
