Marriage equality proponents are pushing for presidential support, according to POLITICO. Activists are encouraging President Barack Obama to endorse gay marriage before the 2012 election.
Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus believes it would shore up the support of both moderate and young voters, who hold marriage equality dear, per Joseph Williams’ reporting.
“Mr. President, what better moment will there be? [Next year] you might lose,” Marcus wrote. Advocates argue that support for gay marriage could be Obama’s secret weapon for the 2012 election.
Former Army officer Dan Choi, who campaigned hard against DADT, believes Obama’s support would go a long way politically.
“I think if he did come out and say, ‘Yes, I believe gay people are equal,’ you’d have a lot of [gay and straight] volunteers,” Choi said last summer.
Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan just endorsed gay marriage. Obama continues claiming that his views are evolving.
DOMA Challenge Comes to California Courtroom
A U.S. Department of Justice lawyer argued Friday—in a San Francisco courtroom—that the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional, Metro Weekly reports. Federal counsel said DOMA’s marriage definition keeps Karen Golinksi from obtaining health coverage for her partner.
Karen Golinski (right) with wife Amy Cunninghis
U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey S. White presided over a hearing, where he weighed whether Golinski’s case should be dismissed or granted a judgment without a trial. The House Republican-controlled Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group is leading the charge for dismissal.
Golinski asked to include her spouse, Amy Cunninghis, on her federal employee health insurance plan. It spurred a heated dialogue between units of government.
Photo: President Barack Obama: Whitehouse.gov; Karen Golinski and Amy Cunninghis: Courtesy of SFGate.com
