Why was obama against gay marriage
President Obama remains opposed to same-sex marriage, even though he agrees with a district judge that California's ban against it is unconstitutional, a White Residence adviser said today.
Supporters of Proposition 8 -- a measure approved by California voters in 2008 that bans same-sex marriage -- plan to appeal yesterday's ruling, and it may reach the Supreme Court.
"The president does challenge same-sex marriage, but he supports equality for lgbtq+ and lesbian couples, and benefits and other issues, and that has been effectuated in federal agencies under his control," Ivory House adviser David Axelrod said today on MSNBC.
He noted, however, that the president has always opposed Proposition 8.
"The president opposed Proposition 8 at the time -- he felt it was divisive, he felt that it was mean spirited," Axelrod said. "We reiterated that position yesteday."
The court battle over Proposition 8 could thrust the debate over same-sex marriage help onto the national stage and compel the president to take a less ambivalent position.
"His position on Prop. 8 has always been clear. What has not been obvious is how he squares his position for equality with his refusal to embrace actual e
Timeline of Obama's 'Evolving' on Same-Sex Marriage
President Obama will sit down with "Good Morning America" anchor Robin Roberts today at the White House for a wide-ranging interview, his first since Vice President Joe Biden publicly voiced his support for queer marriage and North Carolina voters imposed a fresh ban on all lgbtq+ unions.
Asked Tuesday whether Obama was prepared to opine on the debate, White House spokesman Jay Carney said, "I can tell you that I'm sure it is the case that he will be asked again at some point when he gives interviews or push conferences about this issue, and I'll leave it to him to portray his personal views."
Here's a look back at the various positions he has held on the issue: from appearing to support the unions as a young state senate candidate, opposing them outright as a matter of faith in 2004, to suggesting a shift in line with public opinion:
FEBRUARY 1996: "I favor legalizing same-sex marriages, and would fight efforts to prohibit such marriages," reads a typed, signed statement from then-Illinois state senate candidate Obama in response to a questionnaire by the Chicago LGBT newspaper "Outlines." White House Communi
Reaction to President Obama’s Same-Sex Marriage Endorsement
Count me stunned that President Obama came out in favor of same-sex marriage, after years of straddling and waffling. I was among those who said he would (a) stay on the fence through the election, uncomfortable though that might be, because (b) there’s more political downside than upside in bringing the issue forward and taking a stand that still alienates many swing voters.
Why, then, did he complete it? And what does it mean?
As to why, various press accounts speculate that pressure from gay donors played an important role (gay money features prominently in his campaign), and that Vice President Biden’s sudden emergence as “comfortable” with homosexual marriage, combined with Education Secretary Arne Duncan’s endorsement, made Obama’s straddle untenable–potentially dividing the party and alienating its pro-gay base in a year when unity and enthusiasm are essential.
To me, those explanations sound unconvincing, or at least incomplete. Lgbtq+ money knows that the choice between Obama’s Democrats and Mitt Romney’s Republicans is as stark on gay issues as the distribute ever ha
The 'evolution' of Obama's stance on gay marriage
Since stepping on to the national stage in 2004 when he ran for the Senate in Illinois, Barack Obama has shifted his views on whether queer couples should have the legal right to join. “My feelings about this are constantly evolving,” Obama said about same-sex marriage in December of 2010.
By Wednesday his views had evolved to the position that gay and sapphic rights advocates had urged upon him since 2004. Obama said, “For me personally, it is significant for me to depart ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married.”
Related: Obama backs queer marriage
Such couples already are able to get married in a few states.
But it was not yet clear from the excerpts that ABC News released on Wednesday afternoon whether Obama intended to exploit his political clout to try to get legislatures in the majority of states to change their laws, whether he would appoint federal judges who would overturn state laws on constitutional grounds, or by what other means he would use his power to enable homosexual couples to marry.
It also is not clear whether Obama still believes, as he said in 2006, that
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Obama probably shouldn’t hold lied. But we shouldn’t expect presidents to lead moral crusades.
By Nathan PippengerWhen President Obama finally “evolved” on lgbtq+ marriage in 2012, I wrote a piece praising Joe Biden’s big mouth—if you recall, the famously loose-lipped VP had endorsed marriage equality in a (possibly) unscripted moment, seeming to coerce Obama’s hand on the issue. We may never understand if that admission was planned, but we now hold confirmation that Obama’s shift would own come sooner or later. In his new book, David Axelrod acknowledges what everyone already knew: Obama was never against gay marriage. Unless, that is, he had changed his mind since 1996, when he wrote in response to a questionnaire: “I favor legalizing same-sex marriages, and would fight endeavors to prohibit such marriages.” Two years later, perhaps sensing that his judgment to pursue a career in politics was working out after all, Obama softened his tone. In recent years, Axelrod had taken to lying on his boss’s behalf, explaining that the President favored civil unions but “does oppose same-sex mar