A quote from the C-Fam website, 30 October 2008

A coalition of 33 American organizations has formally complained to the German government about what they see as the interference of German diplomats in a domestic American electoral fight. They charge that German foreign ministry and justice officials are working to promote “same sex marriage” in the United States and are working to defeat a California voter initiative to defend traditional marriage. The initiative, Proposition 8, is a response to the California Supreme Court 4-3 decision in May to strike down a similar measure passed by majority vote of Californians in 2000 that defined marriage as exclusive to a man and woman.

German Federal Minister of Justice Brigitte Zypries campaigned recently in California to urge voters to follow the lead of Germany and the rest of Europe in promoting “same sex marriage” by defeating Proposition 8. [...]

The visit was arranged by Germany’s Consul General in San Francisco, Rolf Schuette, who has been working with local homosexual rights activists in California to undermine Proposition 8 by linking those who defend traditional marriage to the Nazis.

The coalition American pro-family organizations sent a letter of protest to German Minister of Foreign Relations, Dr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Calling the “aggressive interference” by the Germans “scandalous,” the group complained that “a member of the German Foreign Service is interfering in a domestic matter of the United States that will be decided by American citizens.” The letter said Schuette’s “actions violate the role of a diplomat and abuse the courtesies extended to members of a foreign government,” bringing “disrepute to [Germany] by his insensitive misuse of his role as a guest and representative of the German government in our country.”