Massachusetts Rep. Barney Frank, arguably the most prominent openly gay politician in Washington, called President Obama’s support for gay marriage “the next logical step” for Obama following his refusal to defend DOMA in court. Frank has been a longtime advocate for increased protections and rights for the LGBT community, and announced in early 2012 plans to marry his longtime partner in his home state of Massachusetts, where same-sex marriage is legal.
Frank’s statement:
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Today he has taken the next logical step to complete the process by expressing his support for our right to marry people of the same sex. I understand why a President facing a national election took some time in making this decision, and I believe that the fact that he first announced his repudiation of DOMA gave him a chance to assess the reaction to that. I know there are those who wish that elected officials would completely ignore public opinion – of course only in those cases where they do not agree with public opinion – but that is not a realistic course in a democracy for those seeking to get the authority from the public to govern.
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