Obama takes ‘evolving’ stance on gay marriage

[PrisonerOfHope]

July 3, 2011 10:17 pm
Obama takes ‘evolving’ stance on gay marriage

By Anna Fifield in Washington

A calculating Washington operative might construe Barack Obama’s continued reluctance to support same-sex marriage as a clever strategic ploy to maximise votes as the 2012 presidential election race gets under way.

Do just enough on gay rights to keep the liberal base onside, if not exactly overjoyed. But stop short of backing same-sex marriage to avoid alienating socially conservative voters in battleground states such as Ohio and Virginia.

This might seem like a typically calibrated stance for a president who is noted for trying to have it both ways on issues such as troop withdrawal in Afghanistan.

But, analysts say, Mr Obama’s comments about gay marriage last week could reflect a rare event in Washington: a politician saying something because he genuinely believes it. “I don’t think this is a case of sitting down and trying to map out the politics of it,” says Norman Ornstein, a seasoned political analyst at the American Enterprise Institute think-tank. “I think this is his genuine feeling. For whatever reason, he has not yet come to the conclusion that this is something he can support.”

Rest of story at link:

www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6722656e-a593-11e0-83b2-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1R6xGqELq