Last updated on August 10th, 2014 at 05:30 pm
The latest Republican argument against same sex marriage was delivered by RNC Chair Michael Steele who claimed today that same sex marriage raises health and life insurance costs for business owners. Of course, the same argument applies to traditional marriage, but Republicans aren’t against that…yet.
While addressing the Georgia Republican Convention Steele said about gay marriage and employers, “Now all of a sudden I’ve got someone who wasn’t a spouse before, that I had no responsibility for, who is now getting claimed as a spouse that I now have financial responsibility for. So how do I pay for that? Who pays for that? You just cost me money.” Steele ignored the fact that the exact same situation occurs when any employee gets married.
What’s next for Steele? Is he going to come out against employees having children because it inflates employers’ health care costs? This is the dumbest argument against gay marriage laws that I have ever heard. Remember, this is the same man who claims that the GOP must become a big tent party. Steele doesn’t have a clue. I can understand the people who are against gay marriage for religious reasons, but to claim that it is bad for business if gay marriage is legal is crazy. All marriage is bad for business, if you buy Steele’s argument.
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The reality is that employers have been passing more of the health insurance burden along to employees for years. Health insurance has become a shared and costly burden. Steele’s argument is ludicrous and laughable. The way not to reinvent the Republican Party is to continue to be only the party of business. Steele has no clue.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
