McCain, Obama avoid same-sex marriage

Proposed bans on same-sex marriage are on the ballot in three important states this fall, rousing passions on both sides, yet neither John McCain nor Barack Obama seem eager to push the issue high on their campaign agendas.

In California, the stakes are particularly high: It's the first time a constitutional marriage ban goes before voters in a state where same-sex couples already have the right to wed. Similar amendments are on the ballots in Florida, a battleground in the presidential race, and Arizona, McCain's home state.

McCain supports the amendments, Obama opposes them -- yet the two nominees rarely mention them proactively as they compete for middle-of-the-road voters who rank the marriage debate low on their list of concerns.

"It doesn't benefit either one to promote it for their own campaign," said Matthew Corrigan, a political science professor at the University of North Florida. "You have the economy, the war. It makes it more difficult for social issues to get people's attention."

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