By George Anderson
A new CBS News/New York Times poll has found 55 percent of Americans surveyed would oppose a law allowing homosexual couples to marry. Forty percent would approve a law giving gay married couples the same legal rights as heterosexuals.
Younger people are much more likely than older Americans to support gay marriage. Sixty-one percent of 18- to 29-year-olds favor it; that drops to just 18 percent among people 65 and older.
Self-described conservatives are the biggest opponents of allowing homosexuals to marry. Seventy-one percent of conservatives, 64 percent of Protestants and 63 percent of blacks are opposed to same-sex unions.
Despite strong opposition from the Vatican, 44 percent of Catholics are in favor of a law legalizing homosexual marriages with 50 percent against it.
Moderator's Comment: Should the retail and CPG industry be in favor or opposed to the enactment of a federal law granting homosexual marriages the same legal rights as heterosexual married couples? How would legalization of gay marriages affect business?
A New York Times report said President Bush "believed Americans should treat gays in a welcoming and respectful manner, he remained firmly opposed to gay marriages and that administration lawyers were working to ensure that the term 'marriage' would cover only unions between men and women." [George Anderson - Moderator]