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Did Obama 'bungle' gay marriage announcement?

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    Reaction to president's shift on issue

  • Duration 4:26
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Old out record setting fund -- raise your head actor George Clooney's the Los Angeles -- mansion.

Hollywood is of course home to some of the most high profile supporters of same sex marriage.

This development likely will rally that part of the democratic base and bring in lots of money.

But what other political consequences.

Might it have come November talked to a AB Stoddard about it she's an associate editor of the hill.

-- -- -- new column out on the president's stance on gay marriage may be you think that he.

Was sort of dragged into this by Joseph Biden.

Well he admitted that he was -- -- and it it least in terms of the timing I think the president had a long public evolution.

On this topic was cleared all of those -- -- activist community that he actually decided that he was supportive.

Of same sex marriage but that he was waiting for some perfect moment he admits in his interview he was going to do this before that convention who's gonna roll it out in his way.

But it was an evolution minute and then he'd already made a decision and and the fact that his vice president on spoke too soon forced him.

Time to come out -- quickly and in the intervening days as they tried to cover -- what that broke or sort of change you know the perception of what job Vice President Biden had said they looked silly and it was costing the president -- is becoming a question of his character.

And it looks like a coward and he was forced to come out early and I thought they miss an opportunity to lead any bungled.

The entire issue considering that on the policy matter itself -- -- made his decision.

-- let me read back to -- your own quote just because I I enjoyed the line that you used here in your article you write.

Obama is water treading wimp out on the highly charged issue was making him appear to be as cynical calculating and cowardly.

As his adversaries describing it you're not saying that he he came to this as a rock solid matter of principle.

Well if he did -- he was hiding it and then and I think the matter is not that the president support same sex marriage it's that he.

Was not being completely honest about his opinion that he was changing.

Over a long period of time in which -- people on both sides of the issue question.

How credible and reasonable -- was to say that you although you continue to oppose any efforts to ban same sex marriage you still can't support it.

That evolution seem too long and it didn't seem genuine and people started to question whether or not he was hiding the truth.

Until after the election so it's not really so much the merits of the policy itself so much is the way in which.

He came around to make his announcement in might be from a -- conviction but he probably made that decision a while ago and he just wasn't being truthful but -- -- felt.

But was it politically Smart I mean when you take a look at the states that have already voted to ban gay marriage.

States that are very pivotal in this upcoming election and we have a map of seven -- it was just on this -- over the weekend the North Carolina voted against.

Gay marriage.

And and that's where his convention is going to be also Colorado Nevada Iowa Missouri Ohio Florida Florida elderly voters.

Are solidly against gay marriage and the president needs these states if he wants to win reelection.

That is true and I'm sure that is why he was waiting -- trying to find a perfect way to do this he was going to do it at all.

He's probably just North Carolina go -- he won -- last time by fewer than 141000 votes.

He got it registered third 300000.

New African American voters in that state last time to eke out that very slight win.

They could be disappointed by the economy in those among them were very religious and more culturally conservative and oppose gay marriage could decide to stay home and sit out the election.

It will be you'll -- it could cost him in swing states for shore.

And -- -- probably why he'd made the political decision to to remain quiet but his policies were the most pro day.

Rights policies ever.

Passed by any president he had a record that was indicating that he was.

Himself a believer in the legality of same sex marriage.

He is is refusing to say so and again I'm not arguing the policy I understand the politics were dangerous.

But he was really just -- trapped himself into a good corner.

And he was gonna try to galvanized the gay community -- helping and across the finishing line and I guess she was gonna announce it before August but I'm it was a different call up.

High wire act for him and that's why it is so difficult this week and a vice president helped drag him across that finish line AB Stoddard.

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