Governor who vetoed same-sex marriage a favorite with party base

by Mike Andrew - SGN Staff Writer

Two days after announcing that anti-Gay Rep. Paul Ryan would be his vice-presidential running mate, Mitt Romney's campaign revealed that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie would deliver the keynote address at the Republican National Convention.

Christie is perhaps best known to the LGBT community as the man who vetoed New Jersey's marriage equality law in February.

'I think it's the institution of marriage and it's bigger than just a word - it's hundreds of years of tradition both [sic] legally and societally and religiously, and that's what I stand up in protecting,' Christie said at the time.

Christie refused to sign New Jersey's marriage law unless it was put on the ballot for voters to approve or reject it, a tactic common to anti-equality forces in many states. The LGBT community should have been happy to have its rights put up for a vote, Christie maintained.

ANGERED AFRICAN AMERICANS
'The fact of the matter is, I think people would have been happy to have a referendum on civil rights rather than fighting and dying in the streets in the South,' he said.

Needless to say, Christie's statement horrified not only LGBT rights advocates but also New Jersey's large African-American community.

'People were fighting and dying in the streets of the South for a reason,' New Jersey Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver said.

'They were fighting and dying in the streets of the South because the majority refused to grant minorities equal rights by any method. It look legislative action to bring justice to all Americans, just as legislative action is the right way to bring marriage equality to all New Jerseyans.

'The governor's comment is an insult to those who had no choice but to fight and die in the streets for equal rights,' she added.

OPPOSES WOMEN'S RIGHTS
Christie does not limit himself to opposing LGBT rights, however. He is against reproductive choice and supports mandatory waiting periods and parental notification laws, as well as banning late-term abortions.

Christie is also a strong advocate of tax credits and state-funded vouchers for parents who wish to send their children to religious schools, as he does.

Like Ryan, Christie also wants to defund social programs to finance tax cuts. Last year, for example, Christie signed a tax-cut bill that reduced funding for the state's Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI) fund by $190 million per year. TDI provides income to people who are temporarily unable to work because of illness or injury.

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