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The U.S. Supreme Court's historic same-sex marriage decision on Friday has already become a symbol for all those fighting for equal rights around the world, however it has also became a political lightning rod expected to directly affect the 2016 presidential race.
The voices against this decision have come from the Republican candidates for the White House, who have expressed their outright opposition to the ruling.
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Conservative Texas Senator Ted Cruz called the decision "tragic" and on Sunday the state's Attorney General Ken Paxton said that county clerks who object to gay marriage can refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples despite the top court's decision.
But probably the most aggressive statement comes from former Arkansas governor and Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, who on Sunday called to opponents of marriage equality to engage in acts of civil disobedience.
Huckabee, who announced his presidential campaing last month, said that the rulings on same-sex marriage and Obamacare are "two of the most blatant, disturbing, disgusting examples of judicial activism in the history of these United States."
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Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee Promises To ‘Veto’ Marriage Equality http://t.co/Di9oNVC7RK pic.twitter.com/7vBW6dqyrw
— MTV News (@MTVNews)
junio 24, 2015
The 59-year-old politician and former Fox News host also said that that these decisions open the door to something "very dangerous" and that that conservative Christians don’t have a choice but to directly challenge the court's decision.
Meanwhile, other Republican politicians wanting to occupy the White House, like former governors Jeb Bush and Rick Perry, decided to be more moderate in their statements. They have suggested that Republicans must move on in the wake of the decision, which is considered as the most important expansion of marriage rights in the United States since the Supreme Court’s landmark 1967 decision that struck down laws prohbiting interracial marriage.
