Since Obama has been President...

[ruggerson]

Iowa, Maine, with New Hampshire probably soon to follow, have legalized marriage equality.

Vermont became the very first state to do so via the legislature.

The number of states legalizing marriage equality has almost doubled since Obama took office.

The Washington Post reported in its poll that, for the first time, a majority of Americans supported equal marriage rights.

Washington DC voted overwhelmingly to recognize same sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions.

Prop 8 was upheld by the California Supreme Court.

The high powered lawyers who were on the opposite sides of Bush V Gore, the most contentious political case of the last fifty years, have joined forces to take marriage equality to the USSC on equal protection grounds.

This has all happened since Jan 21, 2009.

President Obama, who promised to be our fiercest advocate, has uttered NOT A SINGLE WORD about any of this, other than to tell a joke at a correspondents dinner.

We all know that the President putatively is against marriage equality (he reverts to the biblical "marriage is between a man and a woman"), but considering the fact that gays and lesbians helped elect the man, it is not unreasonable to expect that he would use the bully pulpit as he promised he would, to lend moral support to core ideas of equal rights, to add to the gathering momentum which is sweeping the country.

Even if he cannot yet muster a reversal on marriage, his words of support for the general process of change and justice could add enormous heft and lend the power and legitimacy of the White House to a group of citizens asking nothing more than equal representation under the law.

We need and expect our President to stand up for what is right and good.

He's not George Bush, of whom we had no expectations whatsoever, other than constant attacks on our families.

He's Barack Obama. And we're his constituency. And he needs to take hold of this moment in history, not let it sweep right by him.

[marmar]

1. A very reasoned, level-headed and, above all, spot-on post.....

n/t

[derby378]

2. I'm not holding my breath...

I'm still waiting for Obama to stop standing in the way of prosecutions for Bush administration officials who declared torture to be legal.

[xchrom]

3. ...

'President Obama, who promised to be our fiercest advocate, has uttered NOT A SINGLE WORD about any of this, other than to tell a joke at a correspondents dinner.'

[Deep13]

4. A Federal employment nondiscrimination act would be nice. nt

[Howardx]

5. none of that matters

only todays perceived slight matters

[Duncan Grant]

14. If only you were as silent as Obama. (nt)

[ruggerson]

19. lol

[ProgressIn2008]

6. I do believe Obama has thrown himself under the freedom bus. nt

[sibelian]

7. I don't think he'll ever say anything.

He's had ample opportunity to address the subject directly.

[ruggerson]

10. so far, at least

it's very disappointing

[Zenlitened]

8. K&R. -- n/t

[slipslidingaway]

9. knr nt

[FiveGoodMen]

11. K&R

[kid a]

12. Thats a VERY (VERY) short list of whats "happened" since Jan 21.

And, I'm sure he tells a few jokes a day.

Your attributing his "joke" at the dinner to the same-sex marriage is a long stretch.

[ruggerson]

13. He talked about partners going to Iowa to make it official

it was a double entendre - one part being the state had just legalized marriage, the other part being Axelrod and him going to Iowa to file for his candidacy.

They are the only words he has uttered relating to marriage equality since he became President.

And the fact that he may or may not tell a number of jokes per day is completely irrelevant to the subject at hand.

[Duncan Grant]

15. I thought he had "visionary leadership" down pat. I was wrong.

Our president isn't leading. He's derelict.

[NMMNG]

16. He's been elected

He no longer needs LGBT $$$ and votes. Accordingly he has no need (and seemingly no desire) whatsoever to pretend he gives a rat's ass about us, our needs, our lives or our families.

[H2O Man]

17. I agree.

[natrat]

18. that dude is like a cheesy hollywood actor

unfortunately the same people who wrote bushs' lines are writing his,,,what a turd