Obama opposes California same-sex marriage ban, which McCain supports

Obama opposes California same-sex marriage ban, which McCain supports


John Wildermuth, Chronicle Staff Writer

Wednesday, July 2, 2008


(07-01) 12:47 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- Democratic Sen. Barack Obama has announced his opposition to a November ballot measure that would ban same-sex marriage in California, a move that puts gay rights front and center in the 2008 presidential campaign.

In a letter to San Francisco's Alice B. Toklas Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Democratic Club Sunday, the presumptive presidential nominee said he opposed "the divisive and discriminatory efforts to amend the California Constitution" and similar efforts in other states.

Earlier last week, Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain, the GOP standard-bearer in November, took the other side. He told officials of Protect Marriage, a coalition that gathered 1.1 million signatures for the California measure, that he backed their efforts "to recognize marriage as a unique institution between a man and a woman."

Obama is skating gingerly past his previous position on the issue. The Illinois senator has said repeatedly that he believes marriage should only be between man and a woman. When the California Supreme Court overturned the state's ban on same-sex marriage in May, Obama released a carefully nuanced statement saying he respected the court's decision, believed states should make their own decisions on marriage and "will continue to fight for civil unions as President."

But civil unions, gay activists have often argued, aren't the same as marriage, which would put Obama on the wrong side of what's increasingly seen as a civil rights issue.

Obama's opposition to the same-sex marriage ban, however, brought immediate praise from groups trying to defeat Prop. 8 in California, which would amend the state constitution to say that "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

"It's great to see Senator Obama's statement, which is consistent with what he has said in the past about allowing each state to make its own decision," said Geoff Kors, executive director of Equality for All, which is heading the Prop. 8 opposition. "Is it ideal that he doesn't support same-sex marriage? No. But it's important when political leaders say gay and lesbian couples should be treated equally."

It's no surprise to see McCain on the side of the same-sex marriage ban. While he opposed a GOP-backed 2004 federal constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, he supported a failed 2006 Arizona initiative that would have blocked not only same-sex marriages, but also domestic partnerships.

For both campaigns, the decision to get involved in the same-sex marriage debate carries plenty of political risks. California is one of three states with same-sex marriage bans on the November ballot. While California is seen as Obama country and Arizona is McCain's home state, Florida, the third state seeking to limit marriage to a man and a woman, is a tossup state that will be a major prize in the November election.

E-mail John Wildermuth at jwildermuth@sfchronicle.com