N.H. Senator Splits With Santorum on Marriage Logic

U.S. senator Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire seemed to side with Mitt Romney on whether to annul marriages of same-sex couples if Republicans get their way and pass a marriage ban.

In contrast to Rick Santorum, who told NBC he would invalidate the couples' marriages, Romney has said they should remain legal even while others are prevented from wedding.

"What do you do?" Ayotte asked, seeming confused at first by a question from NBC's Chuck Todd. "I mean, obviously that's a legal issue that would have to be addressed."

"You're a former state attorney general -- where do you go here?" he pressed.

"Traditionally, in a situation like that under law you have to grandfather people and rely on the law as it was," she said.

But Ayotte said it's ultimately the responsibility of lawmakers in New Hampshire to decide what happens next as they press for a repeal of the state's marriage equality law. Santorum and Romney have both pledged to seek an amendment to the U.S. Constitution banning marriage equality.

The Republican senator was also asked by Todd about Santorum's insistence that same-sex marriage is the legal gateway to polygamy -- a notion she said she did not share.

"While certainly among Republican voters there are strong feelings on the social issues," she said, "the focus on New Hampshire in terms of the number 1 issue is going to be spending, size of government, and how do we get people to work, so I really think he's getting off message there."

For his part, Santorum repeated his worries about polygamy again today and was again jeered by a displeased audience, according to video from Think Progress. Voters go to the polls in New Hampshire's primary on Tuesday.