Obama Drops Opposition to Anti-Gay Marriage Act

The president now says the statute defining marriage as between a man and a woman is unconstitutional.

The U.S. Justice Department announced Wednesday it will no longer defend the 1996 Defence of Marriage Act because Barack Obama believes it is unconstitutional. It was unexpected and welcome news for the country’s gay rights activists, who had criticized Obama for his defence of the federal bill that defines “spouse” as a member of the opposite sex and allows states to not recognize gay marriages performed in other states. Obama had ordered the Justice Department to involve itself in cases attempting to overturn the bill saying that it was important to protect existing statutes, but opponents to gay marriage claimed the department’s efforts were half-hearted. Congressional Republicans signaled their intention Wednesday to take up the bill’s defence in the courts.