Lindsey Graham wants states deciding same-sex marriage, dodges questions about interracial marriage

South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham has strong feelings about same-sex marriage and abortion. He’s stubborn in his belief that decisions around these personal issues should be up to individual states and that the U.S. Supreme Court should stay out of it. But when the fiery issue of interracial marriage comes up, Graham is fast to pivot to any other topic.

“I’ve been consistent. I think states should decide the issue of marriage, and states should decide the issue of abortion,” Graham told Dana Bash, host of CNN’s State of the Union, on Sunday. “I have respect for South Carolina. South Carolina voters I trust to define marriage and deal with the issue of abortion. Not nine people on the court. That’s my view.”

Of course Graham trusts South Carolina voters—Republican voters, anyway—to decide on abortion. As The Washington Post reports, the state is angling for a total ban on abortion, starting with a bill making it illegal to give “information [about how to get an abortion] to a pregnant woman, or someone seeking information on behalf of a pregnant woman, by telephone, internet, or any other mode of communication.”

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