Focus on the Family is having a conniption fit about remarks made by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, acknowledging and welcoming family members of newly sworn in Ambassador Mark Dybul.
From the transcript Remarks at the Swearing-in Ceremony of the Honorable Mark Dybul as U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator:
SECRETARY RICE: Thank you. Thank you very much. I am truly honored and delighted to have the opportunity to swear in Mark Dybul as our next Global AIDS Coordinator. I am pleased to do that in the presence of Mark’s parents, Claire and Richard; his partner, Jason; and his mother-in-law, Marilyn. You have wonderful family to support you, Mark, and I know that’s always important to us. Welcome.
It’s important to have the support of wonderful family. How shocking. Indeed, Tom Minnery of Focus on the Family was not only “shocked,” but also “astonished,” “dismayed,” “disappointed,” and possibly some other inappropriate mental states not reported.
“That’s astonishing that that fact would be underscored, highlighted by the Secretary of State. This is very provocative and very disappointing.”
In response to our inquiries, Minnery heard from the State Department.
“Secretary Rice’s Chief of Staff called to say it was a mix-up, that somebody should have checked this mother-in-law business, didn’t do it and it got out.”
Perhaps, but such nuances are Rice’s stock and trade. Besides, she was standing right next to Dybul’s partner who was holding the Bible for the swearing-in. Peter Sprigg is with the Family Research Council.
“It’s not that it shows they’re pushing an agenda in favor of same sex marriage, but it shows that they’re really rather apathetic about the efforts to defend traditional marriage.”
We’re sorry that this unwanted intrusion of the reality-based world into federal government functions is causing dismay among the Dobson set. Maybe they should just demand that a prohibition on recognizing a legal status for unmarried couples that approximates some aspect of marriage be stapled to the Constitution. Oh, wait – they are.
That ought to take care of such “nuances” as mistakenly identifying an Ambassador’s family as the Ambassador’s family.
Agree or disagree with gay marriage, it would have been incredibly rude if Secretary Rice not acknowledged Mr. Dybul’s family.