They paid his way, now they want their due

In a confidential letter to Karl Rove, Mr. Bush's top political adviser, the [Arlington Group] said it was disappointed with the White House's decision to put Social Security and other economic issues ahead of its paramount interest: opposition to same-sex marriage.
  NY Times article

Amazing, isn't it? I wonder if they figure that once same-sex marriage is banned, the economy will work itself out. Today's Daily Twain (sidebar) fits in here quite nicely, I think: The older we grow the greater becomes our wonder at how much ignorance one can contain without bursting one's clothes. --Mark Twain

"We couldn't help but notice the contrast between how the president is approaching the difficult issue of Social Security privatization where the public is deeply divided and the marriage issue where public opinion is overwhelmingly on his side," the letter said.

These are Bush's folk, to be sure. Something less than 51% of people who actually voted = "overwhelmingly". That's even worse logic than Bush's insistence that 51% of people who actually voted constitutes a public mandate for his policies. I read somewhere that the actual percentage of rabid righteous religious rightwingers voting is something like 15%. Still, that's a good block of voters that, at a 51% win, Butthead can't afford to lose.

Several members of the group said that not long ago, many of their supporters were working or middle class, members of families that felt more allegiance to the Democratic Party because of programs like Social Security before gravitating to the Republican Party as it took up more cultural conservative issues over the last 20 years.

[...]

The members of the coalition that wrote the letter are some of Mr. Bush's most influential conservative Christian supporters, and include Dr. James C. Dobson of Focus on the Family, the Family Research Council, the Southern Baptist Convention, the American Family Association, Jerry Falwell and Paul Weyrich.

[...]

The letter also expressed alarm at recent comments President Bush made to The Washington Post, including his statement that "nothing will happen" on the marriage amendment for now because many senators did not see the need for it.

"We trust that you can imagine our deep disappointment at the defeatist position President Bush demonstrated" in the interview, the group wrote. "He even declined to answer a simple question about whether he would use his bully pulpit to overcome this Senate foot-dragging."

The letter also noted that in an interview before the election Mr. Bush "appeared to endorse civil unions" for same-sex couples.

The group asked Mr. Rove to designate "a top level" official to coordinate opposition to same-sex marriage, as a show of commitment.

Trent Duffy, a spokesman for the White House, said on Monday that "the president was simply talking about a situation that exists in the Senate, not about his personal commitment or his willingness to continue to push this issue." Mr. Duffy said the "president remains very committed to a marriage amendment" and added, "We always welcome suggestions from our friends."

I don't think Trent "gets it".