President Obama has announced he supports the bill to repeal DOMA, appropriately named the Respect For Marriage Act, that will be debated in an historic session of the U.S. Senate Wednesday. DOMA is the Defense of Marriage Act, found to be unconstitutional by a federal court judge, the Attorney General, and the President himself. In a press conference today, Press Secretary Jay Carney stated President Obama “is proud” to support the Respect For Marriage Act, “which would take the Defense of Marriage Act off the books for once and for all.” The statement itself is historic, as the president rarely backs specific legislation, especially this early in the game. But Obama is known to prefer legislative, rather than judicial repeal efforts, and has publicly supported repeal of DOMA since 1996.
Carney added Obama has “long called for a legislative appeal for the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, which continues to have a real impact on families.”
Courage Campaign Chair Rick Jacobs said in response, “We are delighted that today, on the eve of a historic Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, President Obama endorsed the Respect for Marriage Act. It is rare that a White House endorses a bill that has yet to pass first in either the Senate or the House. President Obama’s decision to do so underscores the urgency with which the Defense of Marriage Act must be repealed. His support makes clear to all Americans that the Defense of Marriage Act has no place in our society.”
Evan Wolfson, one of the founding advocates of the freedom to marry movement and founder of the organization, Freedom to Marry, stated, “Freedom to Marry applauds President Obama’s strong endorsement of the Respect for Marriage Act and the repeal of so-called ‘DOMA.’ The federal government should not be picking and choosing which marriages it will honor and which it will disregard when it comes to the important federal protections that come with marriage, such as Social Security, health coverage, fair tax treatment, and immigration rights. Congress should follow the President’s lead and return the federal government to its traditional practice of honoring all lawful marriages equally – without the ‘gay exception’ of DOMA.”
Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese, who will be testifying tomorrow in favor of the bill, stated, “We thank the President for his support of the Respect for Marriage Act. He has repeatedly expressed his desire to see the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act repealed and his Justice Department has taken the historic step of ending its defense of that odious law in court. By supporting this legislation, the President continues to demonstrate his commitment to ending federal discrimination against tens of thousands of lawfully married same-sex couples.â€
Chris Geidner of MetroWeekly initiated the question at today’s press conference with Jay Carney. Geidner offered this transcript:
Metro Weekly: The president has said in the past that he opposes the Defense of Marriage Act, but he is yet to endorse the Respect for Marriage Act, which is the specific piece of legislation —
Carney: Senator [Dianne] Feinstein [(D-Calif.)], yeah.
Metro Weekly: — aimed to repeal the bill. Tomorrow, the Senate will hold the first hearing into that bill. Is the administration ready to endorse that bill?
Carney: I can tell you that the President has long called for a legislative repeal of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, which continues to have a real impact on the lives of real people — our families, friends and neighbors. He is proud to support the Respect for Marriage Act, introduced by Sen. Feinstein and Congressman [Jerrold] Nadler [(D-N.Y.)], which would take DOMA off the books once and for all. This legislation would uphold the principle that the federal government should not deny gay and lesbian couples the same rights and legal protections as straight couples.
Metro Weekly: A follow-up. In line with that, the administration is also still in court defending “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” When is — Tomorrow, also will be three weeks since the President said that certification will come in “weeks, not months.” Has the President spoken with Secretary Panetta or Adm. Mullen about the certification since he made that statement, and where does it stand?
Carney: I don’t know if the President has had those conversations either with Secretary Panetta or his predecessor or Adm. Mullen. What the president said remains the case and our expectation, but I don’t have any more information for you on that.
This time President Obama got it right. He got out in front of the debate and threw his weight behind it. It’s one thing to make a campaign statement that you support repeal of DOMA. It’s another to state you support a specific bill that will repeal it.
Senator Feinstein introduced the Senate version of the Respect For Marriage Act in March of this year. The House’s companion bill was introduced by Rep. Jerrold Nadler the same day.
Come back here Wednesday where we’ll be covering the Senate DOMA debate.
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