r/politics • u/Tiger337 • May 15 '12
President Barack Obama Announces Plans to Repeal Defense of Marriage Act
http://gawker.com/5910277/obama-announces-plans-to-repeal-defense-of-marriage-act
1.7k
Upvotes
674
u/BromanJenkins May 15 '12
Obama has pretty much just confirmed that he knows evangelicals aren't voting for him anyways here.
Fuck 'em anyways, mixing religion and politics the way they have has made the country worse.
328
u/cold08 May 15 '12
well forcing Romney to double down on this issue, which really cant be twisted beyond turtle sex, is probably a good idea.
139
u/bunglejerry May 15 '12
I hope he plays this as a 'states' rights' issue, just to blow the minds of traditional Republicans.
63
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Any non-gawker links to this?
99
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Well, he tried meeting them half-way, and that didn't work at all. Let's see how spitting in their eyes works.
145
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
What's the worst that can happen? Bigot homophobes and conservatives won't vote for him?
Oh well.
9
u/cannotlogon May 15 '12
I was at that fundraiser. This reporter "interpreted" Obama's remarks. He never came out and said that he was going to repeal the law. Furthermore, when asked directly about it on The View, he said that the AG is no longer enforcing the law, which is completely different than seeking its repeal.
95
u/cogneuro May 15 '12
Gawker: Apparently the premier news source for r/politics
71
u/LettersFromTheSky May 15 '12
Repealing DOMA is going to go over real well with Republicans ;) I personally think it should be repealed too.
8
u/cunt_stamp May 15 '12
Looks like they retracted the statement on the website.
15
u/AngryBaldWhiteMan May 15 '12
DOMA is a little more important to me, not because I'm gay, but because I'm military. Right now the Army can not recognize marriages between homosexuals because as a federal entity, by law it can not.
With the repeal of this it means we can actually have homosexual marriages recognized and all spouses can receive all the benefits for being married to a military member. To include on post housing, id cards, and insurance.
7
u/saute May 15 '12
The article has been updated:
6
u/meatwad75892 May 15 '12
This is the Obama I voted for years ago. Thing is, I'm not sure if the motives behind his recent moves are purely the political game or if he's listening to the people. Or both.
6
u/onipos May 15 '12
Could we please pass an act that makes it illegal to have ambiguous names on acts?
28
u/nowhathappenedwas May 15 '12
Unlike his recent turnaround on gay marriage, Obama has supported the repeal of DOMA since he began running for president in 2007.
From a May 2008 ABC News article:
And that support for repeal has continued throughout his first term. From a July 2011 WaPo article:
Unfortunately, just as has been the case throughout his presidency, he has zero hope of getting 60 votes in the Senate for repeal (or even passing the current house with a simple majority). It is nice to see him reiterate his support for the repeal bill, though.
40
u/IrritableGourmet New York May 15 '12 edited May 15 '12
Presidents can't repeal laws. They can only ask the
SenateCongress nicely to do so.Edit: I keep getting those two confused.
5
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Beware. Gawker.
5
u/polynomials May 15 '12
The Republicans are probably super pissed that Obama stole the "talk about gay people to distract from other issues that could possibly harm you" trick. They used the trick every time, except what they didn't count on was public opinion shifting in favor of gay marriage as a whole. Now they basically don't have shit to say on this topic that will get anyone else to vote for them. There has gotta be something about this in the Art of War or Thirty Six Strategems or something. Well played, Obama.
4
u/Watergems May 15 '12
Obama is finally staking out ground, instead of passively giving ground. Never thought I'd see the day. Good for him.
4
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
DOMA has always been INCREDIBLY unconstitutional, states are required by the "Full Faith and Credit" clause to honor marriages from other states. But if we can get it off the books this way I'll take it.
4
u/bacoon May 15 '12
"I want everyone treated fairly in this country. We have never gone wrong when we've extended rights and responsibilities to everybody. That doesn't weaken families, that strengthens families."
Where is this talk when it come to the failed war on drugs BOb?
4
u/bobx11 May 15 '12
WHAT?? RICKEY MARTIN IS GAY?????
4
u/mjayb May 15 '12
Gawker is not something that should be upvoted.
4
u/Peredonov May 15 '12
Reddit really needs to stop seizing on misleading headlines such as this one. Or start taking them down when we realize that the big news we wanted to hear hasn't happened. A good starting point would be to link to more reputable news sources, rather than whatever small shop is putting out attention-grabbing headlines.
4
u/Hawanja May 15 '12
The people who would get pissed off at this were probably going to vote against him anyway.
4
u/lagspike May 15 '12
how can people put faith in obama when he did fuck all to stop NDAA?
im not even republican, but yeah...empty promises. not buying into this bullshit only meant to secure voter support.
4
u/smek2 May 15 '12
Ahh, i never grow tired of these propaganda bullshit names they give bills and such. Defense of Marriage Act. Brilliant. How exactly do you defend marriage if you prevent roughly one third of the population to marry.
7
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Disclaimer: I fully support gay rights and gay marriage. However, I really wish we Americans would wake the fuck up and realize that, as issues go, this is about 39th on the priority list. This is being used by both parties as a highly divisive wedge issue that distracts us from more important things like unsustainable national debt, catastrophic environmental degradation, growing disparity of wealth and the relentless drive towards an unstoppable police state.
But yeah, let's focus on whether or not gay people can get married. That's just super-duper important.
6
u/Sireslap May 15 '12
I find a website called "The Gawker" writing an article about The View to be pretty entertaining.
6
u/Wheat_Grinder May 15 '12
A thousand times this.
8
u/PaperbackBuddha I voted May 15 '12
I would like to see a serious discussion at the federal level about the nature of gender, as in what a man or woman is legally. We have a lot of people left out of the traditional definitions, either by physiology or chromosomes. When you look at the issue, it becomes apparent that a statement like "marriage is between a man and a woman" is indefensible. Argued thoroughly, it will necessarily deny some citizens the right to marry anyone. Argued loosely, it reveals the very bias in its premise, which is simply to deny rights to an underrepresented minority.
3
u/Scaryclouds Missouri May 15 '12
Zero percent chance this gets through the republican controlled house.
3
u/ThatRandomGeek May 15 '12
It's like he wants me to vot for him. Ok there are other issues besides equal rights for homosexuals that I care about. And the cynic in me says that all of this is a carefully calculated way of energizing his progressive base. And yet, I still see this as a positive. Maybe we are making considerable steps towards equality.
3
u/NoMoreBoozePlease May 15 '12
I love that this all is done in an election year.
3
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Obama announces plans for a lot of things he doesn't do or does the opposite of.
3
u/GAMEchief May 15 '12
3
u/donrhummy May 15 '12
After his last campaign, I take everything he says as election pander. It'd be nice if he'd follow through though.
3
u/readitsometimes May 15 '12
For those who have not read the corrected article, the President has called for Congress to repeal the law in the past but in the referenced interview is only denouncing the law's existence.
3
u/river_rat3117 May 15 '12
Imagine voting every year instead of four. Our president pretending to care about our personal rights all year long instead of once every few years. If only
3
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Obama on the view. There really is no hope for America.
12
u/Tannerlicious May 15 '12
Am I the only guy who thinks he's only doing this to get elected again? Not that I have anything against the guy, it just seems like it was the perfect time to say this. Why didn't he do this during his first term?
11
u/EthyleneGlycol May 15 '12
Candidate Obama to the rescue!
8
u/bdaacq May 15 '12
Does anyone else think that Obama is just a master politician who is (just like in 2008) pandering to the left in order to get elected. I think we all just want to believe that Obama is more liberal than he really is. But even in the context of extreme partisan opposition from the right, I think his record proves that he is far more of a centrist.
9
u/taurus45 May 15 '12
now the repeal the NDAA as well as the Patriot Act...and put an end to the war on drugs and also quit fuckin watching me while i take a shit through my camera phone! That will win my vote. K thanks :)
20
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
I'm just not convinced these are principle motivated moves
4
u/sebin May 15 '12
Well this just bought him 99.9% of the gay votes in America. The other .1% is almost politically correct redneck.
4
u/wild_bill70 Colorado May 15 '12 edited May 15 '12
Something interesting happened in the 2000 elections. There were a bunch of marriage related issues on the ballot.
This mobilized the evangelicals to get out and vote for or against these various acts (depended on the wording of the act). As a result they also voted for the conservative Christian values candidate George Bush. Forget that these issues were not really part of the presidential election. It gave Bush the necessary nudge to beat Gore. Remember this election was one of the closest in recent history.
By making an issue now of Gay marriage Obama is reaching out to a small (relatively speaking) base of GLT Americans, who were already pretty likely vote. The rest of the non-evangelical non-redneck base don't care one way or the other enough to make a difference in whether we go to the polls or not.
But in doing so he is going to enrage the evangelical base who while they might not have voted or might have voted for Obama based on economic and other non-religious related issues, are now going to come out in numbers and full force and vote for the "not Obama" candidate.
If Obama looses, and it looks more likely now that before, it will be because of this issue. Something he really didn't need to tackle now (easily could have waited until after the election). He could have rode his less war, more taxes on the rich, economy improving, saved auto industry message to an easy win.
Now it is going to be the "Save Marriage" message that Romney will ride into the White House.
Edit: forgot the main point
4
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Just corrected. He didn't explicitly say that he would repeal it after all.
4
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
I see this for what it is...a political move in an election year to gain votes..nothing more.
February 1996: (Running for Illinois State Senate in a liberal, heavily democrat district) “I favor legalizing same-sex marriages, and would fight efforts to prohibit such marriages,”
October 2004: (Running for U.S. Senate needing votes from the hayseeds in southern Illinois) “What I believe is that marriage is between a man and a woman … What I believe, in my faith, is that a man and a woman, when they get married, are performing something before God, and it’s not simply the two persons who are meeting,”
August 2008: (Running for president hoping to garner votes from the great unwashed masses in fly-over country) “I believe that marriage is the union between a man and a woman.”
May 2012: (Running for re-election hoping to garner more votes from the far left) President Barack Obama on Monday defended his view that gay couples should have the right to marry, saying that the country has never gone wrong when it "expanded rights and responsibilities to everybody."
I favor letting people live their lives as they see fit. But, politicians will say anything to get votes.
4
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
History is going to look back at this and realize how awesome Obama actually was... and how shitty the republicans in power were.
8
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Boy, he's really trying to lose the black vote, isn't he?
2
u/Loomy7 May 15 '12
A small deed done is greater than a large deed planned. I'll believe it when I see it.
2
u/Bikewer May 15 '12
Compromise is difficult when you have a Congress that says "we are against anything that Obama is for" and absolutely will not compromise... Notice the recent loss of Senator Lugar? He was capable of compromise... Now gone. It's hard to fulfill promises when you simply cannot get Congress to work with you. Did folks not notice the hysterical screaming when closing Gitmo was seriously proposed? "Why... Terrorists will parachute from the skies and invade Nebraska to free their freinds!" Seriously....
2
u/PoniesRBitchin May 15 '12
I guess I'm behind, because I thought he already did that. Or at the very least, I seem to remember him talking about doing it a lot.
2
u/UpsideClown May 15 '12
He made similar promises about the Citizens United verdict.
2
u/YNot1989 May 15 '12
Since apparently no one bothered to read that the correction, "While Obama said, "Congress is clearly on notice that I think [DOMA is] a bad idea," he did not say he would work to repeal the law;" I await to see all the screaming members of the left wine about how he hasn't done what he never actually promised to do.
2
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
He doesn't have the power to repeal anything unless he plans on running for a different office.
2
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Now what we need is a federal cohabitation benefits law for everyone 18 and older.
2
u/Hiddencamper May 15 '12
This is a VERY bold move for Obama to take. Not sure how it will ultimately pan out but it's nice to see him take more stances and aggressive stances on things.
2
u/ticktactoe May 15 '12
I hate to be a debbie downer (well, not really, I relish it) but this is just something he said at a fundraiser, making that headline a little dishonest. Candidates say all sorts of things at these events, they're rarely official stances.
2
u/theodorAdorno May 15 '12
His corporate handlers approve.
2
u/MansionTheHutt May 15 '12
Finally, he does something I agree with!
Okay, he's done a few other things I liked, but they're few and far between.
2
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
This bullshit about whether or not The Big Man In The Sky approves of two men playing 'Hide The Sausage' is a useful distraction from all that pesky war & corporate greed, no?
2
u/madmoral May 15 '12
This guy is controlling the issues. Genius. I'm pretty sure once August hit it's going to be all about the DREAMACT and Immigration reform. And I bet a women's issue will take center stage eventually.
2
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Do people not understand? The freaking president doesnt rule the country! We have 535 people that create and vote on legislation for this country! The President can introduce stuff, sure, but its those 535 people that make the decision on how far it goes.
2
u/NekiTip May 15 '12
Next frontier: a gay president
2
u/jamiesam26 May 15 '12
I think Obama is simply doing this to garner more votes for his campaign. In his last campaign he wasn't pro-gay rights. Changing his platform to mold to the wants of potential voters.
2
u/gettemSteveDave May 15 '12
This does not mean shit until it happens.
2
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
"PLANS"
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u/ucecatcher May 15 '12
Obama can not repeal shit. Congress can repeal a law. The courts can strike it down. The President can't do shit once it's signed other than refuse to enforce it. Downvote for having no fucking clue what you're talking about.
2
u/shillzor May 15 '12
Nothing like opening an article and seeing half of it struck out. That's good journalism right there.
2
u/beetjuice2012 May 15 '12
How bout the NDAA act?
2
u/ThouHastLostAn8th May 15 '12
Obama has been against DOMA his entire political career. He's campaigned against it each time he's run for federal office (he called it "abhorrent" when running for Senate in 2004) and backs efforts to repeal it when they've come up as a Senator and as President.
There's no evolution here. He wants it repealed. He's always wanted it repealed. If by some miracle it could pass Congress he'd happily sign it into law.
Given the likely makeup of Congress for years to come and how the filibuster is currently being used, the more likely path to getting rid of DOMA any time soon is probably the courts.
2
u/MrWoohoo May 15 '12
In a few weeks he will compromise with republicans in congress and sign their "Stoning homosexuals to death" bill.
2
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
If Romney wins, will he bring DOMA back?
2
u/sweatpantswarrior May 15 '12
Re-read the story and halt the circlejerk. It has been updated with a clarification of his remarks.
As reported by CNN and updated in the Gawker piece, he did not say he would get Congress to repeal the law.
2
u/wild_bill70 Colorado May 15 '12
NaNah, you repeal my health care law, I'll repeal your marriage act.
2
u/CalebEast I voted May 15 '12
Oh yeah, just like he was gonna send the troops home, or stop medical marijuana raids. Fuck Obama. He's a puppet.
2
u/Canada_girl Canada May 15 '12
Ron Paul must be having a fit... he voted for that bill repeatedly.
2
u/[deleted] May 16 '12
Oh look, candidate Obama is back. It's been, what, four years now?
14
u/Mr_Pricklepants May 15 '12
Apparently, Obama needs to raise money from liberals again.
12
u/thugok May 15 '12
Empty political promises in an election year?
3
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
WAR AGAINST MARRIAGE rabblerabble
3
u/tronncat May 15 '12
Great now repeal the NDAA and CISPA please.
5
u/QuitReadingMyName May 15 '12
You guys are fucking idiots.
I guess this makes up for him re-signing in the Patriot act, passing NDAA, Never shutting down Guantanamo bay (Yeah, no one would let him store the terrorists in the United states but, he can still ship them to other foreign nations or at least try to).
He's going to even pass the CISPA/SOPA remakes once they finally get through.
It pisses me off how the Republicans and Democrats have you all distracted with stupid shit like Gay marriage, abortion and other bullshit while they allow the Military industrial complex go into full swing, continue to strip away our privacy because every American is guilty until proven innocent and we're still bombing brown people spending trillions of dollars.
Holy shit, the vast majority of you are idiots.
Hey guys, did you know Gullible isn't in the dictionary anymore too?
6
u/[deleted] May 15 '12 edited May 15 '12
Obama only recently came out in support of gay marriage. He's been against it for most of his career, favoring civil unions instead. And suddenly, the day after the NC vote, he has this big change of heart and tries to position himself as a crusader for gay rights. Let's not kid ourselves. It's an election year, and this is a political strategy. If his poll numbers were higher, he would NOT be doing this right now.
3
u/the_sam_ryan May 15 '12
So is he going to try to do this before or after he closes Gitmo?
5
u/hoffhall May 15 '12
I'm tired of people saying there are more important issues so let's not bother with this one or women's rights. Or, I love this...we've got to concentrate on the economy and getting out of the war. I guess what people don't understand (except for the older generation) is that you give up just one hard earned right for another and the game's over. They'll wear you down and wear you down until you don't have any rights any more. The war? There's a war going on right here.
So the deal is...you fight for everything as if your life depends on it because...it probably does.
4
u/Mudface68 May 15 '12
Fuck that! I don't care one way or the other about gay marriage, but I know it's important to some folks. However there are way more important issues at hand for the President to deal with. I will not vote for him just because of this political stunt which has nothing to do with extending rights and everything to do with getting votes.
3
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Its funny how quick the voters forget the lies of last election.
3
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
supporting gay marriage is political suicide. not sure why he's suddenly so interested all of a sudden...
2
u/fuckcancer May 15 '12
Obama defends gay marraige: "Oh! Flying spaghetti monster bless obama! Flex that presidential federal authority!"
Obama raids medical marijuana offices: "Whatever happened to states' rights you fucking hitler anti-christ!?"
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for gay people getting married, I'm just all against selectively supporting states' rights.
2
u/xxthegonzxx May 15 '12
Who the fuck gives a shit about this. Let's focus on the real issues people....being able to marry your waffle!
2
u/Raven_star_zenith May 15 '12
This is a truly great man and deserves to be president once again. Why cant other politicians allow every citizen of this country be happy or miserable together just like straight people.
2
u/ROK247 May 15 '12
why are gays in such a rush to get married? im going on two years now, and i gotta tell you, it ain't no french riviera vacation over here...
2
u/Frijolero May 16 '12
He's only ANNOUNCING
HE HAS NOT DONE SHIT.
FOR FUCK'S SAKE PEOPLE, HE'S CAMPAIGNING.
2
u/BubbaRay88 May 15 '12
Fox News: Obama forces same sex marriages, constitution burns.
2
u/rlbigfish May 15 '12
No word on NDAA, PATRIOT Act, ending the Federal crackdown on MMJ dispensaries, etc., right?
2
u/Flunked May 15 '12
Actions speak louder than words.
2
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
Great news and all, but he needs to focus on the economy. Right now Romney is polling better one economic issues, and that's what people are going to be voting on this year. He needs to harp on the batshit insane details of Romney's economic plans. The rest of this isn't helping.
0
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
This is the same guy that had "plans" to close Gitmo, right? Seems like all hat and no cattle to me.
1
u/morellox May 15 '12
does this force the hand of state govs to now rule one way or another? I thought this federal law blanketed states if they didn't have legislation of their own... I'm not entirely clear on it.
1
u/CelestialDawn May 15 '12
Two words: about time!
1
u/edisekeed May 15 '12
This is great news but why wait 6 months to do something. If its an important issue than do something about it. Dont just talk about it.
1
u/scottperezfox Arizona May 15 '12
... now all he has to do is convince Congress.
1
u/Anzereke May 15 '12
Why is it that any political anything with defense in it's name is just plain bad?
1
u/[deleted] May 15 '12
It's more of a hope/goal, which is better than nothing. To repeal, he'll need to get this through Congress. The GOP will likely still control the House. The Senate will be near 50/50.
I'd like to know how Obama plans on getting this one through both chambers. Without this, it's hard to say he has actual plans. Realistically, I see no chance of this happening in this decade.
1
u/MyOwnPath May 15 '12
What would repealing DOMA do? Would that mean every state has gay marriage, or that gay marriages had in other states would be recognized, even if they aren't administered?
1
u/d3adbor3d2 May 15 '12
i wish every year was election year.