WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s support for same-sex marriage carries major political risks six months before an election in a nation that remains divided over whether gay couples should receive the same recognition and legal standing as men and women in traditional marriages.
Obama’s endorsement Wednesday, a milestone for the gay rights movement, was the first from a sitting president and a potentially powerful tail wind for a cause struggling for electoral approval. The president equivocated for more than a year, saying that his position was “evolving.” More recently, he came under considerable pressure — from his somewhat deflated base and a powerful network of gay donors — to speak his mind before the November election. His announcement was hastened by a similar declaration from Vice President Joe Biden on Sunday, which prompted calls for Obama to speak out or risk falling behind the curve.
“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,” Obama told ABC News’ Robin Roberts in an interview hastily arranged by the White House to quiet the fallout from the Biden remarks.
Obama told the “Good Morning America” anchor that he arrived at the decision by talking to gay friends, staff members, his two daughters and his wife, who he said shared his support. His Christian faith and the golden rule factored in.
“The thing at root that we think about is, not only Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf, but it’s also the golden rule — you know, treat others the way you would want to be treated,” he said. “And I think that’s what we try to impart to our kids and that’s what motivates me as president.”
Obama had cited religion in opposing same-sex marriages as he campaigned for president, but in December 2010 declared his position was evolving. That position was widely viewed as a wink and a nod to supporters of gay rights, who believed the president was withholding a public declaration of support out of concerns about alienating key voters.
Nationally, a slim majority of voters supports gay marriages, according to most polls; it’s a majority that has been increasing because of shifting attitudes among young people and middle-class voters. Still, religious, black, Latino and older voters remain more likely to express opposition, and 38 states have adopted prohibitions of same-sex marriage, according the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Some Democrats contend that the voters most strongly opposed are unlikely to vote for Obama anyway, adding gay marriage, like abortion, to the list of social issues dividing partisans.
But the president’s announcement is likely to hurt him in the South, where one in three swing voters strongly opposes gay marriage, a recent Pew Research Center poll found. Just this week, North Carolina, which Obama narrowly won in 2008, approved one of the strongest bans on same-sex unions in the country.
More crucial to his re-election chances will be the effect in Virginia, where a recent survey showed him with a slight lead over his likely Republican challenger, Mitt Romney. Polls in the state show the electorate nearly evenly divided. There’s also a danger of turning off some religious voters, such as white Protestants in the Rust Belt or Catholic Latinos. On the other hand, young voters and strong supporters of gay marriage may be energized.
But Obama’s decision is already unleashing a wave of financial support from gay and lesbian donors.
“Within minutes, people were calling with their credit cards. They’re thrilled,” said Andrew Tobias, treasurer of the Democratic National Committee and a top fundraising bundler for Obama.
On Wednesday, Romney emphasized his consistency on the issue in response to Obama’s changed position.
“I have the same view that I’ve had since running for office,” he said. Romney was a staunch advocate of gay rights when he was running for governor of Massachusetts in 2002. But he never endorsed same-sex marriage and later became an outspoken leader of the drive to ban it after a court legalized the practice in Massachusetts.
“My view is that marriage itself is a relationship between a man and a woman, and that’s my own preference,” he told reporters Wednesday. “I know other people have differing views. This is a very tender and sensitive topic, as are many social issues.”
For months, the president’s advisers gave no indication that he planned to reveal a new stance before the November election, believing that Obama’s record on other gay rights issues would suffice to win over an increasingly powerful network of gay donors and other ardent supporters. Obama ended the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy barring gay soldiers from serving openly and dropped the legal defense of the Defense of Marriage Act.
The New York Times contributed to this report.
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