President Obama earlier today announced that he now supports same-sex marriage, reversing his longstanding opposition amid growing pressure from the Democratic base and even his own vice president.
In an interview with ABC’s Robin Roberts, President Obama said that he supports same-sex marriage. The president said:
“I
have to tell you that over the course of several years as I have talked
to friends and family and neighbors when I think about members of my
own staff who are in incredibly committed monogamous relationships,
same-sex relationships, who are raising kids together, when I think
about those soldiers or airmen or marines or sailors who are out there
fighting on my behalf and yet feel constrained, even now that Don’t Ask
Don’t Tell is gone, because they are not able to commit themselves in a
marriage, at a certain point I’ve just concluded that for me personally
it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same sex
couples should be able to get married.”
The
president stressed that this is a personal position, and that he still
supports the concept of states deciding the issue on their own. But he
said he’s confident that more Americans will grow comfortable with gays
and lesbians getting married, citing his own daughters’ comfort with the
concept.
“It’s
interesting, some of this is also generational,” the president
continued. “You know when I go to college campuses, sometimes I talk to
college Republicans who think that I have terrible policies on the
economy, on foreign policy, but are very clear that when it comes to
same sex equality or, you know, sexual orientation that they believe in
equality. They are much more comfortable with it. You know, Malia and
Sasha, they have friends whose parents are same-sex couples. There have
been times where Michelle and I have been sitting around the dinner
table and we’re talking about their friends and their parents and Malia
and Sasha, it wouldn’t dawn on them that somehow their friends’ parents
would be treated differently. It doesn’t make sense to them and frankly,
that’s the kind of thing that prompts a change in perspective.”
The
announcement completes a turnabout for the president, who has opposed
gay marriage throughout his career in national politics. In 1996, as a
state Senate candidate, he indicated support for gay marriage in a
questionnaire, but Obama aides later disavowed it and said it did not
reflect the candidate’s position.
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