It really struck me as ironic that the Republican party, which is supposedly a champion of States' rights, attempted to create a Constitutional Amendment to limit them in their ability to decide who can marry and who can't. I stumbled onto a roll call from the Senate vote and was disappointed to see my Senator, Gordon Smith, among those who voted against States' rights. I wrote him a stern letter (and you can, too!) telling him that I look forward to supporting someone with genuine conservative values, but regretfully it will not be him. It's a bit shocking that he would come out so forcefully against gay rights, considering he and Ted Kennedy introduced legislation to protect gays from hate crimes. I don't think he's really against gay marriage, I really suspect he's just being a tool of his political party. John McCain voted with his brain rather than his party, however. Why couldn't my Senator?

Update: Are you from Oregon? Write to Gordon Smith and tell him what you think!