Kentucky governor supports gay marriage ban in radio ads

Kentucky governor Ernie Fletcher is going to be heard on radio commercials across the state beginning Friday voicing support for a proposed amendment to the state constitution banning same-sex marriage. Fletcher will be encouraging Kentuckians to vote yes for the amendment and telling voters that both he and first lady Glenna Fletcher intend to do the same, said Kent Ostrander, executive director of the Lexington-based Family Foundation. Ostrander read a preliminary script of the commercial over the phone to the Associated Press. Fletcher's help would clear any "potential confusion" for people unsure of whether they would support the amendment, Ostrander said. "To have one of the state's major leaders explain that he and his wife are voting yes for marriage helps clarify that question," Ostrander said. The proposed amendment asks voters whether they favor changing the Kentucky constitution so that a marriage can only be "between one man and one woman." It would also ban civil unions. Same-sex marriages are already illegal in Kentucky. Louisville's Courier-Journal released its Bluegrass Poll earlier this week, which found that 76% of likely polled voters said they would vote for the amendment. Earlier this week the governor asked television stations across the state to stop running an ad sponsored by a group opposing the amendment. Fletcher claimed that the NO on the Amendment group's commercial misquoted him and took his comments out of context.