Any good reason that the percentages here add up to more than 100 percent?

Gallup says: "Percentages add to more than 100 percent due to multiple responses."

If Bush is even marginally successful at diverting attention to this issue, expect "protecting the sanctity of marriage" to appear on a future Gallup poll. Or even "protecting our civil right to deny U.S. citizens the right to marry," thanks to Tony Snow's recent deft-yet-daffy articulation of the issue.

The Bush administration is excellent at creating diversions. More bad news coming out of Iraq? "Hey, look at this issue over here!"

And it WORKS. It worked with Al-Qaida -- "Hey, we can't find Osama bin Laden; let's bomb Iraq!" Most recently, it worked with immigration/illegal aliens -- always an issue, but never a "Top Priority" issue until a few weeks ago.

as I commit the sin of stating the obvious, I'll comfort myself with the fact that it's a good idea to state the obvious sometimes.

This gay-marriage amendment is just business-as-usual for the GOP. This red-meat-for-the-base issue worked perfectly in the 2004 election...it got just enough right-wing nut-cases to the polls that Bush squeeked out a win in Ohio.

Since the GOP has every reason to be concerned about the mid-terms, it's just Politics 101 to put this on the agenda now. No cynicism involved. These guys want to win. They play hard-ball to win. They've learned well from all the demagogues of history. This hard-ball-demagogery has been a winner for the GOP for nearly 40 years, why would they abandon it now?

The brazen quality of the thing is a bit much, but also predictable: the nut-cases who vote for the GOP these days are not really too hip to brazen. In fact, to judge from the television and radio designed for them, they DIG brazen.

Finally, as noted on my local public radio station, there is a small sub-set of senators who actually think banning gay-marriage by constitutional amendment is more important than anything else, and they're taking their shot. I'd say people like this shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the levers of power ... but they're there, and I'm here, and clearly, I missed that boat somewhere along the line.

Would Bush get serious about killing OBL if Osama Bin Laden publically declared his undying love for Abu Musab al-Zarqawi? Geezus.

Poor President Bush. He can’t get any political love anywhere for his anti-Gay Marriage Amendment ploy.

Meanwhile, marauding hordes of newly married mincing Islamic gay Skinnies have captured Mogadishu.

what about flag burnning?

Does Bush know about the questionable "bi" in bio-diesel?

I believe that "Ethics/moral/religious/family decline" probably encompasses the federal amendment to prohibit same sex marriage.

Not that it makes it right.

it still only got 1%. Whoopee.

Any poll has multiple questions, and once the totality is know percentages can by established. For Mr "Anonymus" information one thing is certain, Bushs amendment idea is not really a priority, even the Senate seem to think so. Bush, however, must be scared out of his wits over the November election to try to make political points with the fundamentalist evangelical Right with a dead issue like this.

That's a surprise...only 4% feel that terrorism should be the top priority. I guess we must be winning the war on terrorism.

My friend came to me, with sadness in his eyes

He told me that he wanted help

Before his country dies

Although I couldn't feel the pain, I knew I had to try

Now I'm asking all of you

To help us save some lives

Baaaghdagh, Baaaaghdagh

Where so many people are dying fast

And it sure looks like a mess

I've never seen such distress

Now won't you lend your hand and understand

Relieve the people of Baaagh dagh

Baagh Dagh, Baaaagh Dagh,

Such a great disaster - I don't understand

But it sure looks like a mess

I've never known such distress

Now please don't turn away, I want to hear you say

Relieve the people of Baa Dagh

Relieve Baa Dagh

Baa Dagh, Baa Dagh

Now it may seem so far from where we all are

It's something we can't neglect

It's something I can't neglect

Now won't you give some bread to get the starving fed

We've got to relieve Baa Dagh

Relieve the people of Baa Dagh

We've got to relieve Baa Dagh

Relieve the people of Baa Dagh

With great thanks and no apologies to George Harrison.

Love to all that would fight for this,

The "percentages" add up to over 100%. Was it multiple answer or were people only supposed to give one answer?

Would somebody please tell what the issue is? Anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss has said that tribal societies gave women in marriage as tokens of peace. That strategy has worked well down through the ages. Marriage is one of society's least successful institutions while war is one of our most successful. How can an institution that is less than 50% successful be the cornerstone of a stable society? I think we need to build our society on successful institutions like divorce. I only know of a handful of cases in which it has failed.

Setting fire to the goddamn White House and shooting whoever the fuck comes crawling out like a fucking cockroach.

How many of the senators backing this ammendment have been divorced?

One thing very few people are mentioning is the that public opposition to same-sex marriage has greatly dropped in just the couple years since this issue last conveniently raised its head. There was alot of hysteria the first time around, now this senate debate seems to be viewed with a smirk. The issue is running out of steam. Obviously Massachusetts has not gone up in a ball of fire. People are not as frightened or startled by the concept of gay marriage as they were a few years ago. The tide is turning.

If George Bush and the Republicans are targeting their base, well, they're targeting an ever smaller group.

More chaos and US attrocities in Iraq, Afganistan further collapsing, inflation knocking on the door, the US auto industry in trouble, volitile gas prices with no plan or concept of alternative fuel sources being seriously worked on, scary employment outlook, and maybe a hurrican or two. In November who but the Christian psychos will really walk into the voting booth concerned about gay marriage?