LAST WEEK, in a fit of chutzpah or foolishness, Rick Santorum, a GOP presidential candidate known for his unyielding social conservatism, accepted an invitation to appear on Rachel Maddow’s cable-news show. Ms Maddow is an openly gay, liberal MSNBC host who was a Rhodes Scholar and holds a doctorate from Oxford. Mr Santorum, an attorney and former Pennsylvania senator, is known for his boldly anti-gay rhetoric. He once said that Lawrence v Texas, the Supreme Court case that struck down sodomy bans in 2003, would usher in an era of “man on child, man on dog, or whatever the case may be.” Following Obergefell v Hodges, the Supreme Court’s recent landmark ruling in support of gay marriage, Mr Santorum asserted, in a speech to the National Right to Life Foundation, that the court does “not have the final say on anything. The American people have the final say on everything.”
It was this rather creative view of America’s division of powers that Ms Maddow was keen to challenge. Here we consider their debate, and pick apart their respective arguments. Spoiler-alert: their...Continue reading
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