The Obama Administration Comes Out of the Closet on Marriage

Barack Obama declared throughout the 2008 presidential campaign that “marriage was between one man and one woman.” During that same period, he expressed strong support for homosexuality and the right of homosexuals to civil unions and other benefits.

Many of us were confused by his stance. Was he trying to walk the fence–pleasing homosexuals on one hand by strongly supporting and encouraging their sexual rights–but also trying to capture Judeo-Christian voters by speaking up for traditional marriage? Or was he truly conflicted in his mind about whether homosexuals should be allowed to alter the five thousand year definition of marriage?

We do not know the man’s heart.  But now we do know that he stands opposed to all forty-four presidents before him on the issue of marriage.  We also know that he is neither a Christian or a Muslim on the subject.  As I have stated for two years, in policy, he is a secularist. His position on marriage is not only anti-Christian, it is against the moral teachings of every major religion in the world.

Furthermore, we know that he is desperate to activate his base in order to win the 2012 presidential election. Because on February 23, the Obama Administration came out of the closet on marriage by saying they would no longer defend in court the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

By doing so they have thrown down the gauntlet on the most important moral issue of the 21st century.

This is a stunning development–worthy of our prayers and attention. For five millenia wise and civil societies have built their social fabric on the God-given concept that the joining together of a man and a woman in the blessing and protection of marriage is essential to stable societies and the nurturing of children.

Only one worldview–atheism/secularism–which accepts no moral absolutes–has ever rationalized the crucial nature and definition of the marriage relationship.

The secularists in Europe have made vast inroads on this issue over the past forty years. Homosexual marriage has been growing steadily in popularity there. Now America, once the world’s most Christian and free nation, is following the European path to dissolving the sanctity of marriage.

We now know that the 2012 US Presidential election will not just be about our economic woes or uncertainty in the Middle East.

The issue of marriage will be front and center.

Marriage must be saved.

The secularist assault on morality must be stopped.

The New York Times said about the president’s about-face: “Although President Obama drew much criticism from gay righ advocates during his first two years for dragging his feet on their most important issues, they now see him shifting his positions as he looks at the 2012 elections. The president has calculated that the benefits of responding to his base out weigh the risks of upsetting conservatives who wouldn’t vote for him anyway. The president’s views on homosexual marriage are ‘evolving.'”

This is why the response to the Obama Administration’s coming out of the closet on marriage brought such swift and powerful reaction from the people of faith.

I am a board member of the National Association of Evangelicals–the largest consortium of Christian leaders and churches in America. Following the Obama Administration’s about-face on marriage, NAE President Leith Anderson issued this statement to our members:

“We are at a crossroads in the fight to defend traditional marriage.  Attorney General Holder’s announcement on Feb. 23 that the administration will no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in federal court is a break with the time honored tradition in which the Justice Department works to uphold laws passed by Congress.  Congress now needs to step in and hire its own lawyers to defend traditional marriage—IF we can convince them to do so.  Congress must act within 30 days, or it will lose the right to defend DOMA in the courts.”
 
“Traditional marriage is fundamental to healthy families and a healthy society. This is a critical moment!  Let’s flood Congress with calls and letters, asking them to act now to defend traditional marriage.  The NAE has a new website where you can go to find the names and addresses of your legislators:  www.nae.net/advocacy. You can write them directly from our site!  I encourage you to take a minute to do so right now.” 
 
I am grateful of Leith Anderson’s leadership. I encourage to respond to his trumpet call to action.
 
The highly respected Heritage Foundation also chimed in on the need to save the institution of marriage. Here is their sobering message:

“This Wednesday, Attorney General Eric Holder sent his own version of a “Dear John” letter to the Speaker of the House, informing him that President Barack Obama’s Justice Department will no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in federal court. The letter clearly states that the decision was personally made by the President himself, who, supposedly just this week, came to the conclusion that DOMA violates “the equal protection component of the Fifth Amendment” of the U.S Constitution. This purely partisan act is completely consistent with both President Obama’s unprecedented politicization of the Justice Department and the same-sex marriage movement’s end-run around for democracy.”

“DOMA was enacted by overwhelming majorities of both houses of Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1996. DOMA has two core provisions. First, it defines the words marriage, spouse, husband, and wife wherever they appear in the U.S. Code as referring only to the union of a man or a woman. Second, it defends the right of each state not to be forced to accept the redefinition of marriage in a handful of other states as a result of state court decisions or laws. Nearly 40 states have enacted state-level DOMAs, and 31 have embraced traditional marriage in their state constitutions. No state’s voters have ever voted to the contrary.”

“President Obama knows all of this. He also knows that his Administration’s litany of failures (unemployment above 8 percent, Guantanamo still open, exploding debt, etc.) has weakened him politically. By now asserting that there is no rational case for defending marriage as the union of one man and one woman, President Obama is echoing the claims of same-sex marriage advocated who portray the defenders of traditional marriage as irrational and bigoted. Nothing could be further from the truth. As Heritage Foundation Senior Research Fellow Chuck Donovan explains, defense of traditional marriage is not only rational but a cornerstone of civil society:”

    “‘Marriage is the cornerstone in an archway of values that form the constitution of the family and the foundation of civil society. To its advocates as an institution with a pre-political meaning, it is not an entity created by the state but rather one recognized by the state. It is not about one family, but the coming together of two families, whose role in begetting and bearing children make them not merely part of a community but the creators of community. The community they create is not time-bound, but existing across generations.  … What is at stake is the whole task of society to ensure that as many children as possible are raised by their mothers and fathers.'”

“There is one silver lining in the President’s decision to call the vast majority of Americans who believe in traditional marriage bigots: Congress now has the opportunity to offer a real defense of marriage in court. Up to this date, the Obama Administration’s fraudulent defense of DOMA in federal court has been characterized by even supporters of same-sex marriage as “collusive litigation.” Congress should defend its rights as a co-equal branch of government under the United States Constitution and fight for marriage.”

“This does not mean that Congress needs to vote on DOMA again. DOMA is still good law. It does mean that Congress needs to act to make sure DOMA has effective and aggressive defense in court. Members of Congress, should seek to intervene in the case to assure that DOMA gets the vigorous defense that should be afforded to all federal statutes for which reasonable legal arguments may be offered—and that the President is refusing to provide.”

As Heritage points out, not only has the president turned his back on traditional marriage–the backbone of American society–but he has also chosen to selectively enforce the laws of the land–a direct affront to his oath of office. This greatly weakens the traditional strength of our three branches of government.

The Obama Administration wants to dictate to the US Supreme Court and Congress.

The Family Research Council also decried the administration’s position:

“Family Research Council condemned the decision today by President Obama that the U.S. Justice Department will abdicate its responsibility and no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court. The Defense of Marriage Act, (DOMA) enacted overwhelmingly by Congress and signed into law by President Clinton in 1996, is currently under attack in the courts.”

“Family Research Council President Tony Perkins made the following comments regarding the decision: ‘This decision by President Obama and the Department of Justice is appalling. The President’s failure to defend DOMA is also a failure to fulfill his oath to faithfully execute the office of President of the United States. What will be the next law that he will choose not to enforce or uphold?’

“‘Marriage as a male-female union has been easily defended in court and overwhelmingly supported by the American people. There is absolutely no excuse beyond pandering to his liberal political base for President Obama’s decision to abandon his constitutional role to defend a federal law enacted overwhelmingly by Congress.'”

“‘With this decision the President has thrown down the gauntlet, challenging Congress. It is incumbent upon the Republican leadership to respond by intervening to defend DOMA, or they will become complicit in the President’s neglect of duty,’ concluded Perkins.”

If you do not believe that we are truly in a fight for the heart and soul of our civilization, then you need to think again.

The battle for slavery was the great moral issue of the 19th century. We won–after a bloody Civil War. Abortion was the greatest moral evil of the latter part of the 20th century. We are getting close to reversing it–and saving the lives of millions of children.

In the 21st century, the pillar of marriage is weak, crumbling, and about to be re-defined. This will produce disastrous consequences to us, our children, and our grandchildren if we allow its demise.

I ask you pray, make phone calls, and rise up to strengthen and re-establish the institution of marriage in your nation. Start with your own. get active in your state and nation.

The Obama Administration has come out of the closet on marriage.

We must repent of our apathy, seek God’s forgiveness, and through his strength and guidance–put this looming danger back into the shadows where it properly belongs.