and now to prove that civil unions are harmless

[ButterflyBlood]

http://www.pollingreport.com/civil.htm

Do you favor or oppose allowing gay and lesbian couples to enter into legal agreements with each other that are not marriages, but that would give them many of the same legal and financial relationships as married couples?"

Favor: 53
Oppose: 34
Depends: 2
Not Sure: 11

Only 34% are opposed. The Republican base.

This issue isn't going to end the party. Just as long as the candidate emphasizes it's civil unions they're backing, not gay marriage, they'll be fine.

[qb]

1. Step by step

This is good advice. Before long, civil unions will be commonplace and generally accepted. Then is the time to move towards gay marriage.

[jagguy]

2. its the obvious path

its easy to like, hard to dislike.

I'd say that those 34% are about equally divided between left and right and really more like very religious.