President Barack Obama has said in a
statement through a spokesman that he is opposed to “efforts to
deny rights” to gay and lesbian couples.
Gay weekly the Washington
Blade last week asked White House Press Secretary Jay Carney
whether Obama is opposed to a Republican attempt to repeal New
Hampshire's 2-year-old gay marriage law.
Carney said he had not spoken to the
president on the issue.
While a response from White House
spokesman Shin Inouye doesn't specifically mention New Hampshire's
upcoming debate, it does reiterate the president's support for gay
couples.
“While the president does not weigh
in on every single action taken by legislative bodies in our country,
the record is clear that the president has long opposed divisive and
discriminatory efforts to deny rights and benefits to same-sex
couples. The president believes strongly in stopping laws designed
to take rights away,” said Inouye.
Republican lawmakers have said they
will consider state Rep. David Bates' bill that would make New
Hampshire the first state to legislatively overturn a gay marriage
law soon after the January 10 presidential primary.
Bates' bill would replace the law with
civil unions for any unmarried adults, including relatives, and would
allow anyone to refuse to recognize such unions.
Approximately 2,000 gay and lesbian
couples have married since the law took effect.