Michael McManus (columnist)
Encyclopedia
Michael McManus is the author of "Ethics & Religion", a socially conservative but economic liberal syndicated opinion column which appears in several small and mid-range US publications. The column, archives of which are linked below, is shaped much like a 'gathering point' of views; quotes from prominent conservative activists make up the bulk of each. McManus, an evangelical Christian, is also the founder and president of Marriage Savers, a non-profit organization that purports to prepare couples for marriage. McManus previously wrote syndicated columns called "Solutions" and the "Northern Perspective."
for targeted public endorsements of government policy.
McManus was the third person to be implicated in an article by Tom Hamburger of The Los Angeles Times. It was revealed that McManus, who is a self-described "marriage advocate", was paid through a subcontractor of the Department of Health and Human Services to endorse a Bush-approved initiative defining marriage as strictly between a man and a woman. The payments were said to be $4,000 plus travel expenses, with an additional $49,000 paid to his organization, "Marriage Savers". McManus did not disclose this payment to his readers.
Stance on issues
McManus has addressed many modern social, ethical and political issues in his column. Among his published views are:- Sexuality: McManus has described LGBTLGBTLGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
relationships as "sordid", "tawdry", "lewd" and a "perversion". http://www.ethicsandreligion.com/redesignedcolumns/C1358.htm - Gay marriage: McManus opposes both gay marriage and civil unions, or any legal recognition of same-sex relationships, pointing to "the tyranny of unelected judges redefining marriage" http://www.ethicsandreligion.com/redesignedcolumns/C1207.htm and claims that same-sex parenting is "harmful to children." http://www.ethicsandreligion.com/redesignedcolumns/C1311.htm
- Abortion: McManus is definitively anti-choice. He proposes that women seeking an abortion should be counseled to marry the father instead of terminating the pregnancy, stating, "A healthy marriage is the answer to abortion and out-of-wedlock births." http://www.ethicsandreligion.com/redesignedcolumns/C1327.htm
- Divorce: McManus is an opponent of the no-fault divorceNo-fault divorceNo-fault divorce is a divorce in which the dissolution of a marriage requires neither a showing of wrong-doing of either party nor any evidentiary proceedings at all...
law. He believes that "Most divorces are filed by one person who alleges incompatibility, while the other spouse wants to save the marriage. Sadly, divorce is always granted. This column has long advocated that in cases involving children, when adultery or abuse is not alleged, divorce should only be granted if there is 'mutual consent' by husband and wife. What was entered into by two people, should not be ended, unless both people agree." http://www.ethicsandreligion.com/redesignedcolumns/C1311.htm - Gun control: McManus is critical of what he describes as America's "weak gun control" and says it is time to "re-introduce an assault weapon ban, a national limit of one gun a month to anyone, an expansion of the Brady law to include gun show sales and a required check on mental backgrounds of buyers." http://www.ethicsandreligion.com/redesignedcolumns/C1339.htm
Government payout controversy
On January 28, 2005, it was discovered that McManus was one of three media figures to accept money from the George W. Bush administrationGeorge W. Bush administration
The presidency of George W. Bush began on January 20, 2001, when he was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States of America. The oldest son of former president George H. W. Bush, George W...
for targeted public endorsements of government policy.
McManus was the third person to be implicated in an article by Tom Hamburger of The Los Angeles Times. It was revealed that McManus, who is a self-described "marriage advocate", was paid through a subcontractor of the Department of Health and Human Services to endorse a Bush-approved initiative defining marriage as strictly between a man and a woman. The payments were said to be $4,000 plus travel expenses, with an additional $49,000 paid to his organization, "Marriage Savers". McManus did not disclose this payment to his readers.
See also
- Armstrong WilliamsArmstrong WilliamsArmstrong Williams is an African American political commentator, author of a conservative newspaper column, and host of a daily radio show and a nationally syndicated TV program, called The Right Side with Armstrong Williams. From 2004 to 2007, he co-hosted a daily radio program with Sam...
- Maggie GallagherMaggie GallagherMargaret Gallagher Srivastav , better known by her working name Maggie Gallagher, is an American writer, commentator, and opponent of same-sex marriage. She has written a syndicated column for Universal Press Syndicate since 1995, and has published five books...
- Bush administration payment of columnistsBush administration payment of columnistsThe Bush administration payment of columnists refers to the payment of public funds to right-wing media commentators by several U.S. executive departments under Cabinet officials to promote various policies of U.S. President George W. Bush's administration...