Presidential Support

Yesterday, President Obama made clear his support for gay marriage.  After seeing VP Biden, and Secretary Duncan made similar comments over the weekend, I had suspecting something like was going to happen. I just didn’t think it would happen so soon.

Not to put a wet towel onto this announcement, but it is a little late and a bit short. Coming the day after the NC vote was poor timing, but probably intended. He made clear he feels it is an issue best left to the states, which I personally feel is bull. Preventing states from denying citizens rights is something that the Federal government is supposed to do. See the Civil Rights movement, Civil War, 14th Amendment.

That aside, this is a pretty big deal. To have a sitting President come out in support of gay marriage, during an election year, is huge. It raises the issue to national prominence and FINALLY there are big players opposing the bigots on the other side. For so long this issue has just been a fight between citizens and the entire GOP/Conservative side of the country. The Democrats have been pretty weak about this issue, out of fear of the Republican backlash.

It’s nice to see people are starting to stand up and defend the rights of citizens. Will this backfire and rally the Republican base? Maybe, but there’s a good chance it will rally the liberal base. Obama has already been pushing for a more equitable stance on taxes, something most other Democrats still are weak on.

With this announcement, it’s very clear who I’m supporting in the next election. And now, it’s not just to oppose the wackos in the GOP, but because I can actually support him. Kudos, sir, kudos.