Jordan: I Wasn’t Making a ‘statement’ by Inviting Kim Davis

Rowan County, Kentucky, Clerk Kim Davis returned to work Monday, September 14, 2015, saying she will not issue any marriage licenses that go against her religious beliefs, but she left the door open for her deputies to continue to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, as long as those documents do not have Davis' name or title on them. Davis acknowledged that she is not sure on the legality of licenses altered in such a way.

WASHINGTON — (CNN) Congressman Jim Jordan said Wednesday he didn’t invite Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis to the State of the Union speech to make a statement.

“We weren’t trying to make a statement,” he told CNN’s Chris Cuomo on “New Day.” “Everyone knows what my positions are. Marriage should be what it’s always been. I’ve never changed on that and I never will.”

The Ohio Republican said he invited the Kentucky county clerk known for her opposition to same-sex marriage to President Barack Obama’s final address only after the Family Research Council contacted his office to ask if it had any available tickets.

“Our office was approached by the Family Research Council. We were asked to provide tickets for Ms. Davis,” he said. “They asked and we had a ticket available, so we did that.”

Jordan added, “Last night was not about that, last night was about the failed policies of this president.”

Davis told a reporter on Tuesday that she attended the address to provide “encouragement” to “all Christians.”

Briefly jailed last September after she refused on religious grounds to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, Davis, a born-again Christian, told AFP’s Ivan Couronne her message was aimed at Christians “who want to stay and make a difference.”

The-CNN-Wire ™ & © 2016 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved. (Photo: CNN)

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