Andrew Sullivan reprints the text of the proposed Federal Marriage Amendment: “Marriage in the United States shall consist only of the union of a man and a woman. Neither this constitution or the constitution of any state, nor state or federal law, shall be construed to require that marital status or the legal incidents thereof be conferred upon unmarried couples or groups.” He then says, “Note how the states are effectively barred from providing anything that resembles marriage or any of the ‘legal incidents thereof.’ It’s an attempt not only to reverse any state that wants to have same-sex marriage but to invalidate all domestic partnership laws, any state-provided benefits, or any support for same-sex couples anywhere anyhow. It’s a massive power-grab from the states, in an area where states have always had constitutional authority.”

There may be sound arguments against the FMA. But Sullivan’s claim is ridiculous. What does he suppose the words “be construed to require” are doing in the amendment? The amendment is aimed to prevent a judge (or executive-branch official) from inferring same-sex marriage or same-sex marriage-lite from a state or federal law. It precludes a state’s adoption of gay marriage (that’s the first sentence). It precludes a judge’s imposition of civil unions (that’s part of the second sentence). It does not preclude a state legislature or popular referendum from creating civil unions or whatnot. That is, incidentally, one reason the amendment is controversial on the social Right.

To the extent that what proponents say about the amendment is evidence about its meaning, that also points toward my interpretation and not Sullivan’s.