Most Family Advocates, Conservatives Give Bush 'Thumbs Up' on State of the Union Speech

by Jody Brown and Bill Fancher
February 3, 2005

(AgapePress) - Generally speaking, family advocates and conservatives are praising President Bush for his State of the Union address on Wednesday evening. The president renewed his pro-life call to "build a culture of life" and again called for a constitutional ban on same-sex "marriages. In addition, he called on Congress to exercise its constitutional responsibility and to give his judicial nominees the vote they deserve. But his continued push for a so-called "guest worker" program for illegal immigrants furrowed some conservative brows -- as did his plan for a democratic Palestinian state.

President Bush hit the road for the Midwest on the day following his State of the Union speech -- but not before attending Thursday morning's National Prayer Breakfast, which attracts thousands of people, including members of Congress, military and ministry leaders, and hundreds of international officials. As nine other presidents before him have done, the president addressed the annual gathering which, says Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS), is a time when the nation's leader shares his heart and the faith that shapes his soul.

Moral and Social Issues
Sandwiched between explaining his plans for a revamped the Social Security system and praising the advance of freedom in Iraq, Bush took time during his State of the Union address to reaffirm his vow to promote moral values in his second term. Associated Press called it "a bow to the religious conservatives who helped re-elect him" when the president voiced support for faith and family and for those who raise "responsible, moral children."

Nevertheless, many of those conservatives who backed the president in November were pleased with what they heard. One of those leaders, Dr. James Dobson of Focus on the Family, called it a "powerful, moving speech" that spoke to the "most important issues of the day with forcefulness and confident cadence."

Jan LaRue of Concerned Women for America also had plenty of praise. "The president did, in fact, address several of the very important moral and social issues which brought people out by the droves who put him back into office," she says. "He did not break faith in that sense by not addressing those very important things, such as a 'culture of life' and reaffirming a commitment to marriage."

The CWA's chief counsel also says the president was "right on the mark" when he emphasized the need to raise responsible children. But government, she says, must also "fulfill its responsibility to enforce laws that aid parents in protecting their children from the immoral influences of indecency and obscenity."

"Because marriage is a sacred institution and the foundation of society, it should not be redefined by activist judges. For the good of families, children and society, I support a constitutional amendment to protect the institution of marriage." (President George W. Bush, State of the Union, 2005)

Many pro-family leaders -- notably, those who are associated with a coalition of groups known as the "Arlington Group" -- had expressed dismay over the White House's recent apparent lack of enthusiastic support for a federal constitutional amendment defining marriage in America as the union of one man and one woman. But Dobson liked what he heard.

"He was bold in his assertion that Congress must pass the federal marriage amendment," the Focus on the Family founder says in a media statement. "In fact, he endorsed it more strongly than during his recent re-election campaign."

Robert Knight

Robert Knight of the Culture and Family Institute hopes the Chief Executive will keep an eye on those trying to redefine marriage. "The president rightly called attention to marriage's central importance to society and to its divine origin," Knight says. "We hope that he will come to realize that it is not only activist judges who pose a threat to marriage, but also rogue legislators and bureaucrats who are creating counterfeit marriage by other names."

Gary Bauer with Campaign for Working Families welcomed Bush's references to the cause and feels the president will fight for an amendment. "I think the president's comments on the marriage amendment were incredibly reassuring to millions of Americans that desperately want marriage to remain the union of one man and one woman," Bauer says. "There's been a lot of reports about whether he would fight for that amendment. I think he laid that speculation to rest."

"Because a society is measured by how it treats the weak and vulnerable, we must strive to build a culture of life. To build a culture of life, we must also ensure that scientific advances always serve human dignity, not take advantage of some lives for the benefit of others. I will work with Congress to ensure that human embryos are not created for experimentation or grown for body parts, and that human life is never bought and sold as a commodity." (President George W. Bush, State of the Union, 2005)

Wendy Wright

Concerned Women for America's Wendy Wright says Bush left no doubt where he stands when it comes to the issue of life. "President Bush made it clear that human life should be treated with dignity, from the unborn child in a late-term pregnancy to the human embryo, which is under the greatest attack," Wright says. "He also affirmed that ethics and morality must play a vital role in scientific advancement."

And Wright called for the president's backing on pro-life legislation on Capitol Hill. "From the man with the vision and courage to win liberty for the oppressed in Iraq, we hope that his vision to extend human rights to the youngest and smallest among us will come to life in the form of passing strong legislation," the CWA policy director says.

Roberta Combs, president of the Christian Coalition of America, says Bush "rightly showed respect for the right to life, born and unborn, in a country which is increasingly becoming more pro-life."

"Because courts must always deliver impartial justice, judges have a duty to faithfully interpret the law, not legislate from the bench. As president, I have a constitutional responsibility to nominate men and women who understand the role of courts in our democracy and are well qualified to serve on the bench, and I have done so. The Constitution also gives the Senate a responsibility: Every judicial nominee deserves an up-or-down vote." (President George W. Bush, State of the Union, 2005)

CWA's LaRue reiterates the president's statement, saying that "liberty at home is dependent on the proper role of courts in our democracy." The attorney says it is time the "obstructionists" in the U.S. Senate rejected filibusters.

CCA's Combs agrees, saying "unconstitutional filibusters by left-wing senators" must stop -- and noting the importance of appointing judges who are strict constructionists. "[The president] was also right to condemn judges who legislate from the bench," she says, "such as those Massachusetts judges who declared homosexual 'marriage' constitutional."

"America's immigration system is also outdated, unsuited to the needs of our economy and to the values of our country. We should not be content with laws that punish hardworking people who want only to provide for their families, and deny businesses willing workers, and invite chaos at our border. It is time for an immigration policy that permits temporary guest workers to fill jobs Americans will not take, that rejects amnesty, that tells us who is entering and leaving our country, and that closes the border to drug dealers and terrorists." (President George W. Bush, State of the Union, 2005)

At least one immigration group sees that as a "soft" stand on immigration. Phil Kent of the American Immigration Control Foundation says he was not thrilled at all by the speech. "The president again repeated his year-long pledge to try to get another 'guest worker' amnesty program," Kent notes, "And he says that it's not amnesty -- but we can be assured that is surely is."

Kent says the American people are not with President Bush on this issue. "The president is really flying in the face of what the American people want with regard to border security and immigration. It's incredible that he wants to keep pushing this," he says. "Polls consistently show -- whether it's black or white, Democrat or Republican, liberal or conservative -- [that] over 90 percent of the American people do not want any more illegal immigration."

The immigration activist adds that Americans do not want to pay for benefits for illegal immigrants either.

"The beginnings of reform and democracy in the Palestinian territories are showing the power of freedom to break old patterns of violence and failure. To promote this democracy, I will ask Congress for $350 million to support Palestinian political, economic and security reforms. The goal of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace is within reach -- and America will help them achieve that goal." (President George W. Bush, State of the Union, 2005)

Gary Bauer

The president's remarks about renewed support for a Palestinian state disturbed Gary Bauer. The former GOP presidential candidate says those comments made him a bit uneasy. "If there was one area of the speech where I would have to say I'm in total disagreement, it is in the comments he made that somehow we're going to end up with a democratic Palestinian state," he admits.

Bauer says that is one goal he does not think can be attained. "Unfortunately, you don't change overnight a culture that for three decades at least has been immersed in a constant message of hate," he laments. Bauer feels that on the establishment of a Palestinian state, President Bush is going down a wrong road that can have devastating effects.