Anderson Cooper: Obama's Position On Gay Marriage 'Anything But Precise
Anderson Cooper called out President Obama and Vice President Biden on his Monday show over the White House's recent twists and turns on gay marriage.
The White House came under increased pressure to clarify its position on gay marriage after Biden's candid and apparently "off-the-cuff" remarks on the topic during Sunday's "Meet The Press."
When asked if he was now comfortable with same-sex marriage, Biden told host David Gregory, "I am vice president of the United States of America. The president sets the policy. I am absolutely comfortable with the fact that men marrying men, women marrying women and heterosexual men and women are entitled to the same exact rights, all the civil rights, all the civil liberties."
The comments sent the White House scrambling as Biden's comments seemed to indicate his support of same-sex marriage. A spokesperson for the vice president stated in part that Biden's remarks were consistent with President Obama's stance, and that he had not fully endorsed same-sex marriage.
In his "Keeping Them Honest" segment, Cooper called out the White House for saying that Biden's remarks were consistent with Obama's stance on same-sex marriage. He quoted Senior Obama campaign adviser David Axelrod's tweet, in which he stressed that Biden's remarks, "that all married couples should have exactly the same legal rights," was consistent with Obama's position on same-sex marriage.
Cooper disagreed. "The president's position on gay marriage is anything but precise," he said. "Mr. Biden said he's comfortable with the fact same-sex couples are entitled to all the same exact rights, all of the civil rights, all the civil liberties."
He added, "But that's not currently the case, even in states where same-sex marriage is allowed, and it's certainly not President Obama's position. There's no federal recognition of same-sex marriage. Therefore, same-sex couples don't share all the rights heterosexual couples do."
Later, Cooper spoke to CNN's Jessica Yellin. She bluntly called the situation "a mess of the White House's own making, adding, "the bottom line is the president has this convoluted position on gay marriage."
This is not the first time Cooper examined Obama's stance on same-sex marriage. After Obama said his position on same-sex marriage was "evolving" in July, Cooper wondered if his stance on the issue was authentic or just political posturing.
Watch Cooper's "Keeping Them Honest" segment in the video above, and his
