John Wildermuth, Chronicle Staff Writer
Monday, September 8, 2008
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Quote"McCain needs to attract centrists who might otherwise vote for Obama," Pitney said. "He doesn't want to seem a tool of the religious right."
At the Southern California forum, the Arizona senator reiterated that marriage should be "a union between man and woman, between one man and one woman," but he left the door open for other, less-controversial unions.
"That doesn't mean that people can't enter into legal agreements," he said. "That doesn't mean that they don't have the rights of all citizens. I'm not saying that. I am saying that we should preserve the unique status of marriage between one man and one woman."
But political realities might not let the two candidates sidle carefully away from the same-sex marriage debate.
The issue is too small to make a dent in the other major issues that will decide the election.