President Barack Obama on Wednesday
endorsed gay marriage.
Obama made his announcement during an
interview with Good Morning America anchor Robin Roberts.
Portions of the interview are to be broadcast Thursday on the ABC
morning talk show.
Obama becomes the first sitting
president in history to endorse marriage equality.
The president had previously said he
backed civil unions and was “evolving” on marriage for gay
couples.
The announcement comes just three days
after Vice President Joe Biden said he was “comfortable” with gay
couples marrying.
Marriage equality advocates cheered the
news.
Chuck Wolfe, president and CEO of the
Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, a group which supports openly gay
elected officials, called the announcement a “watershed moment for
the LGBT civil rights movement.”
New York Assemblyman Daniel O'Donnell,
who helped pass a gay marriage law in New York and recently married
his partner of 31 years, said he was “thrilled.”
“As the President has previously
acknowledged, for many, this is a changing, evolving issue,”
O'Donnell said. “I'm very grateful that today, our President
declared his support for equal treatment under the law for LGBT
individuals across our country.”
“I commend President Obama for this
brave and honest step,” said New York Congressman Jerrold Nadler,
who has sponsored legislation to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act
(DOMA). “Those who seek to politicize civil rights for personal or
political gain will certainly attack him, but the course toward
marriage equality and justice is the correct and inevitable path.”