Christie Warns Marriage Debate Not Over Yet

New Jersey governor Chris Christie says Republicans should not give up easily in the debate over same-sex marriage, even as more states increasingly approve laws to welcome marriage equality.

Christie and other Republican governors took on the issue at the National Governors Association meeting in Nashville over the weekend. He said that while marriage equality is a "settled issue" in New Jersey, most "states in the country still ban same-sex marriage, so I don't think it's time to stop having the discussion."

He added, according to Politico, "I don't think there's some referee who stands up and says, 'OK, now it's time for you to change your opinion.' The country will resolve this over a period of time. But do I think it's resolved? No."

Meanwhile other Republican governors like Iowa's Terry Branstad and Wisconsin's Scott Walker both said it would be more fruitful to focus on economic issues, according to the Associated Press. Still, Walker's comments follow his appeal of a federal judge's ruling striking down Wisconsin's ban on same-sex marriage.

Meanwhile, Democratic governor Steve Beshear of Kentucky recently appealed a court ruling that struck down his state's marriage ban.

"My goal is to get that issue to the United States Supreme Court and get a final decision that will tell us all what the law is going to be in the future, and then Kentucky will abide by it," Beshear told the AP.

Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio, and Michigan are all scheduled to present arguments against rulings that deemed marriage bans unconstitutional before the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati in August.