Why does christie oppose gay marriage

Gallery: Gov. Supreme shouldn't be tasked with making gay marriage the law of the land, Gov. Chris Christie said today.

Instead, each state "should have the ability to decide on their own" how to settle the issue of same-sex marriage. The governor made the statement less than a week after the U. Supreme Court cleared the way for gay marriage expansion in some states by refusing to hear appeals to repeal same-sex marriage cases from lower-level courts.

When a trial-level judge ruled last month that the state must allow same-sex couples to wed, Christie appealed that ruling to the state Supreme Court. The high court agreed to take up the case but unanimously refused to delay the start of gay weddings in the meantime, saying the state had little chance of prevailing in its appeal.

And just hours after gay couples began exchanging vows on Monday, Christie announced that he was withdrawing his appeal.

The decision makes New Jersey the 14th state to legalize gay marriage. Advisers to the governor said that in dropping the appeal, Christie stayed true to his principles. Some Republicans wanted Christie to fight harder.

Romney, too, said he was forced to comply with the rule of law once it was settled by the courts. Their skepticism helped force a long and expensive primary fight against former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, whose underdog campaign was largely fueled by his opposition to gay marriage and abortion. Rudy Giuliani, the former Republican presidential contender and New York City mayor, also struggled to gain traction in after embracing abortion rights and legal benefits for same-sex couples.

That same year, former Arkansas Gov. State Senate President Stephen Sweeney D-Gloucester , who has promised an override of Christie's veto by the end of the year, today did not commit to keep pushing for a vote. In rejecting his plea for a stay, Christie said, the court made strong statements that settled the larger case. Reed said Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, writing for the court in a opinion on Friday, "left no ambiguity about the unanimous court's view on the ultimate decision in this matter when he wrote, 'same-sex couples who cannot marry are not treated equally under the law today.

Although the high court was only ruling on a stay on Friday, the justices appeared to address all the major issues underlying the case , rejecting Christie's legal arguments and emphasizing he was unlikely to win if he continued appealing a Sept. Jacobson's was the first court ruling in the country to legalize same-sex marriage after the U.

That move extended hundreds of tax, medical and other legal benefits to same-sex couples, but only in states that provided them "lawful marriages. Democratic lawmakers called it a historic day and celebrated New Jersey for joining the rest of the Northeast in allowing same-sex marriages.

Udi Ofer, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, said "the governor made the right call to step aside and allow loving and committed couples to marry after Friday's unanimous New Jersey Supreme Court decision.

Same-sex marriage opponents said Christie should have fought until the end. Michael Doherty R-Warren.