Pro-amendment Forces Call Fair Wisconsin Robocalls Misleading

Robocalls from the anti-gay marriage amendment group Fair Wisconsin urge listeners to vote not on the gay marriage amendment "to send a message that marriage should not be changed."

A caller named "Sue" urges listenes to "remember our children" and urges a no vote. She says marriage is a man and a woman in Wisconsin and people should vote no to "make sure activist judges don't get involved and determine what marriage might mean like they have in other states."

In a second call, "Ron" urges listeners to send a message that "marriage in Wisconsin should not be changed" and urges a no vote. He says a no vote sends a message that "you care about our family values and our children.

"We know in Wisconsin that marriage means a man and a woman. Vote no to stop activist judges. Vote no to protect our values. Vote no on the gay marriage amendment," the caller says.

At the end of each call is a statement clearly identifying them from Fair Wisconsin, the organization leading the fight against the amendment.

WISN talk show host Jay Weber collected copies of the calls from listeners, who played messages on their answering machines. He supplied copies of the calls from "Ron" and "Sue" to WisPolitics.

Listen to the calls:
http://www.wispolitics.com/1006/Sue.mp3
http://www.wispolitics.com/1006/Ron.mp3

Julaine Appling, head of the pro-amendment Vote Yes for Marriage, said in a statement the calls were deceptive and show with Fair Wisconsin there's "apparently no end to what they'll do to get their way."

Mike Tate of Fair Wisconsin defended the calls, saying they were accurate. He said the group has maintained all along that approving the amendment will allow judges to determine the definition of marriage and what qualifies as "substantially similar" to it. The second sentence of the amendment prohibits legal recognition of any relationship "substantially similar" to marriage for unmarried couples.

"We think a yes votes hurts families," Tate said.

Listen to other Fair Wisconsin robocalls from U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold, actor Bradley Whitford and a student:
Feingold
Whitford
Student

-- By JR Ross