When our best is not enough

In 1947, after spearheading the defeat of fascism in Europe and, among other things, preserving the system of popular elections, British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill famously said in the House of Commons: “It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.”

That observation comes to mind with the recent change of heart by U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, an Ohio Republican. Once an opponent of same-sex marriage, he now supports it. His decision will no doubt contribute to the eventual law of the land.

But it was a decision based not on policy or legal or legislative considerations. It was determined by self-interest – his 21-year-old son, Will, told his parents he way gay.

According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Portman said his son, a junior at Yale University, told he and his wife, Jane, that his sexual orientation "was not a choice, it was who he is and that he had been that way since he could remember."

The newspaper quoted the senator: "It allowed me to think of this issue from a new perspective, and that's of a dad who loves his son a lot and wants him to have the same opportunities that his brother and sister would have – to have a relationship like Jane and I have had for over 26 years.”

Portman, who as a U.S. House member backed the 1996 federal “Defense of Marriage Act” – a law now under review by the U.S. Supreme Court and intended to block same-sex marriage – said he has no plans to lead the charge in either reversing Ohio’s 2004 ban on same-sex marriage or pushing for a federal same-sex marriage law.

Yet, he’s seeing the issue in a new light because the issue hit heart and home.

Here is democracy at its worst, rife with self-interest and provincial views, which conspire to block meaningful, often needed, laws that benefit society at large.

Decisions are too often based on how an issue affects a particular legislator or elected official personally, not whether it serves the common good. Same-sex marriage is another step into including – instead of excluding – a group into American society.

A nation that is inclusive, instead of exclusive, is a nation that is stronger morally, socially and economically – the pillars of a just and a secure society.

According to the website, Freedom to Marry.org, 11states (Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington) and the District of Columbia have so far legalized same-sex marriage.

Portman told the Plain Dealer in March that among the reasons he chose now – the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments later that month – to announce his change of view was “getting comfortable with my position and wanting to do this before the politics of these court decisions make it more difficult to have an honest discussion.”

Portman came about his change-of-mind in a decent, human way – the love of his child. But shouldn’t there be more of an intellectual process from a legislator whose vote affects not just his Ohio constituents but the nation?

Fairness and equal rights regardless of sexual orientation as well as race, creed and color is central to our constitutional principles and American spirit. Shouldn’t all legislators, no matter what the issue, decide to vote on what’s best for the nation at large rather than play to the ignorance of the few?
As Churchill also said, “It's not enough that we do our best; sometimes we have to do what's required.”