Thu. October 28, 2010
Washington, D.C. -
President Barack Obama said his attitude on gay marriage is "evolving" and that LGBT community disillusionment is "not justified" during a Q and A session with several liberal political bloggers.
"I am a strong supporter of civil unions," Obama said on Wednesday. "I have been to this point unwilling to sign on to same-sex marriage primarily because of my understandings of the traditional definitions of marriage.
"But I also think you're right that attitudes evolve, including mine. And I think that it is an issue that I wrestle with and think about because I have a whole host of friends who are in gay partnerships. I have staff members who are in committed, monogamous relationships, who are raising children, who are wonderful parents. And I care about them deeply."
"And so while I'm not prepared to reverse myself here, sitting in the Roosevelt Room at 3:30 in the afternoon, I think it's fair to say that it's something that I think a lot about."
President Obama said that "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is "wrong" but that he needed to respect the Supreme Court and Congress as those groups re-examined the policy.
Obama said he's been "as vocal, as supportive" of the LGBT community as any president in history.
"Let me go to the larger issue... about disillusionment and disappointment," he said. "I've appointed more openly gay people to more positions in this government than any President in history. We have moved forward on a whole range of issues that were directly under my control, including, for example, hospital visitation.
"And so, I'll be honest with you, I don't think that the disillusionment is justified."
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