What Do You Mean 'We'

Dick Armey in Where We Went Wrong:

Where did the revolution go astray? How did we go from the big ideas and vision of 1994 to the cheap political point-scoring on meaningless wedge issues of today -- from passing welfare reform and limited government to banning horsemeat and same-sex marriage?

"Cheap political point-scoring" = 1. Banning Horsemeat 2. Banning same-sex marriage. Two equally meaningless wedge issues.  Apparently.

I don't know where Armey has been--other than out of office--but if banning same-sex marriage is cheap political point scoring, the score's pretty good: Most Americans have opposed it for some time and during the last national cycle in 2004, 11 states approved banning it even after some focused efforts to the contrary:

The closest race came in Oregon, where gay rights groups concentrated much of their effort and money and thought they had the best chance of winning. Opponents of the amendment raised about $2.8 million, enough to run TV and radio ads in the Beaver State and outspend pro-amendment forces, according to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.

Yet, in the end, the amendment passed by a margin of 57 percent to 43 percent.

In the remaining states, the amendments passed with 60 percent of the vote or more, with the margin at a whopping 86 percent in Mississippi.

Correct me if I'm wrong--seriously--but I'm unaware of a single state where a ban has reached the ballot box and failed. Armey's on target in this column when he talks about arrogance and the GOP's ridiculous record on spending, but the party doesn't exist as a national force without the support of social conservatives. He doesn't have to like that, but he must be able to count. At least to 11.