Obama becomes 1st president to support gay ‘marriage’

WASHINGTON (BP) — President Obama Wednesday became the first sitting
U.S. president to support gay “marriage” publicly, an announcement that
was surprising perhaps only in its timing and one that could impact the
general election.

The announcement came one day after North
Carolinians overwhelmingly affirmed the traditional definition of
marriage. Four other states will consider the issue this year, a year in
which Obama is seeking re-election.

Obama seemed to be forced
into stating his position after Vice President Joe Biden told NBC’s
“Meet the Press” three days earlier that he is “comfortable” with gays
and lesbians “marrying.”

Obama made the announcement during an interview with ABC News’ Robin Roberts.

“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,” Obama told Roberts. The full interview will air later
Wednesday on ABC’s “World News with
Diane Sawyer.”

Even before Obama was elected, some conservative
and liberal pundits scoffed at the suggestion that Obama did not support
gay “marriage.” For instance, in 2008 he opposed California Prop 8, a
constitutional amendment that defined marriage as being between a man
and a woman. In 2011 he ordered the Justice Department to stop defending
in court the Defense of Marriage Act, a federal law that defines
marriage in the traditional sense, and he also announced support for a
congressional bill that would overturn the law. And this year, his
spokespersons announced he opposed proposed constitutional marriage
amendments in North Carolina and Minnesota. He’s also spoken twice to
events held by the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest gay
group. Yet all along, the White House maintained he merely was
“evolving” on the issue.

Bryant Wright, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, reacted to the news with sadness.

“It
is very depressing news
when the president of the United States uses his power of influence to
endorse same-sex marriage,” Wright, pastor of Johnson Ferry Baptist
Church in Marietta, Ga., told Baptist Press. “… Scripture is very
clear that from the beginning, God intended marriage to be between one
man and one woman. It is important for us who are followers of Jesus to
uphold the sacredness of marriage according to Scripture.”

Wright
added, “Christians are called to pray for our government leaders, and
it is now more important than ever to pray for President Obama in this
very misguided decision.”

It remains to be seen whether it will
cost Obama politically. Although some polls now show majority support
for gay “marriage,” it has yet to translate to the ballot. North
Carolina voters Tuesday passed a constitutional amendment defining
marriage between one man and one woman, and the margin of victory —
61-39 percent — surprised even supporters. Read More