President Obama’s Misdirection on Marriage: Send in the Petards

Chuck Donovan / February 25, 2011

The Washington Post is quick to note the soft underbelly of President Obama’s midstream decision to abandon legal support for the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

In an unsigned editorial, the Post, which shares liberal objections to DOMA as public policy, points out how easily the Administration’s tactic of retreating from duly enacted law “could come back to haunt it.” The editorial cites the example of a future Republican Administration attempting to “sabotage” the Obama health care initiative by refusing to defend it.

Being hoist with one’s own petard is reportedly an unpleasant experience. While seasoned legal observers point out that the President is certainly entitled to his own view of the constitutionality of statutes – and others have underscored how the weak defense of DOMA can actually be replaced now with strong congressional involvement – the off–on, midstream character of the President’s decision here amounts to an ominous precedent that people across the political spectrum should view with concern. What is good for the geese of 2011 may appeal very much to the ganders of 2013 and beyond. (more…)