Hillary vs Obama on the issue of gay marriage

[LittleClarkie]

Obama's quote:

"I'm a Christian. And so, although I try not to have my religious beliefs dominate or determine my political views on this issue, I do believe that tradition, and my religious beliefs say that marriage is something sanctified between a man and a woman."

http://pilgrimsole.blogspot.com/2007/12/god-is-still-speaking.html

Hillary's quote:

"Hillary Clinton and Gay Marriage: Some gay and lesbian voters don't feel like Hillary Clinton has done enough to support gay and lesbian rights, while others believe she is the best candidate for gay and lesbian issues. Clinton opposes gay marriage but supports civil unions between members of the same sex. During her husband's administration, she supported the Defense of Marriage Act, a law preventing the federal recognition of same-sex marriage.

"Marriage has got historic, religious and moral content that goes back to the beginning of time, and I think a marriage is as a marriage always has been, between a man and a woman." - Hillary Clinton, opposing same-sex marriages, quoted in The New York Daily News.

http://lesbianlife.about.com/od/lesbianactivism/p/HillaryClinton.htm

To be fair, some have said that Hillary apologized for stating her opposition in this way, but without link. If you have a link to that apology, I'd appreciate it.

Nevertheless, it seems her opposition still stands.

Other questions I have include:

-How do either of these stances are all that different from most of the other candidates on this issue, either in 2008 or 2004.

-Didn't most of the Dem candidates in the last two elections favor civil unions over gay marriage? Did those who held this opinion cite some sort of religious reason? I know Kerry did. Not sure about the others.

-Is Hillary's or Obama's stance on this issue somehow better, or worse, than what we've seen before in other Dem candidates from the last two elections? If worse, why?

Discuss.