Herman Cain signaled Saturday that he would be in favor of a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, a shift from earlier in the campaign when he said that he would not seek a nationwide ban.
Following his appearance at an Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition event, Cain was asked by the Christian Broadcasting Network if he favored a constitutional amendment.
“I think marriage should be protected at the federal level also," Cain said. "I used to believe that it could be just handled by the states, but there’s a movement going on to basically take the teeth out of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, and that could cause an unraveling, so we do need some protection at the federal level because of that, and so yes, I would support legislation that would say that it’s between a man and a woman."
But on "Meet the Press" last Sunday, Cain took a different approach. Cain was asked by moderator David Gregory if he would seek a constitutional ban on gay marriage.
"I wouldn't seek a constitutional ban for same-sex marriage, but I am pro-traditional marriage," Cain said.
He went on to say that states would be allowed to make up their own minds on the issue.
Cain's hardening on the issue came the week after his Republican opponents jumped on him for a scattered and somewhat contradictory position on abortion rights. The candidate attempted to clarify those remarks at Saturday's event, telling the audience "from conception, no abortions, no exceptions" and clarifying to reporters later that he would sign any federal legislation banning abortions.
But other candidates, including Rick Perry, seized on the comments, saying it was "a liberal canard to say I am personally pro-life but government should stay out of the decision." Rick Santorum called Cain's position "right out of the pro-choice playbook."
