Joe Biden told a group of high-dollar donors that while he is hailed as an early supporter of same-sex marriage, he does not necessarily deserve that credit because public opinion supported the policy.
“I get more credit for marriage equality than I deserve,” Biden told about 200 people at a fundraiser in Denver on Saturday, according to a pool report.
The former vice president said in a 2012 Meet the Press interview that he was “absolutely comfortable” with same-sex marriage before President Barack Obama publicly supported the policy. Days later, Obama declared also his support for same-sex marriage. At the time, Biden reportedly apologized to Obama for putting the president in a tough spot on the issue.
The Supreme Court in its 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges decision declared that state bans on same-sex marriage were unconstitutional, legalizing the practice nationwide.
“I told the president I wouldn’t get out ahead of him, but if I got asked the question, I couldn’t keep quiet. I wasn’t going to be silent on it,” Biden said at the fundraiser. He said that a poll taken the week of his 2012 Meet the Press interview showed 56% support from Americans on same-sex marriage. “Don’t listen to our political advisers. The American people are way ahead,” he recalled saying at the time.
“A number of you thanked me for speaking out for gay rights, civil rights as I call it, as if I took any chance,” Biden said. “I took no chance at all. The American public was way ahead of their government, way ahead of elected officials.”
Biden told a story from his childhood in which his father explained two men whom he saw kissing. “I turned and looked at my dad, and he turned and looked at me and said, ‘Joey, it’s simple. They love each other. It’s simple.’ And it is simple, but this president is doing everything to push progress back,” Biden said.
Biden added that he hopes the Equality Act, which would prohibit “discrimination on the basis of sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation,” will be the first bill that he signs into law if he wins the presidency.
“The first bill I want to sign is the Equality Act because today you can be married in a number of states on Saturday and be fired on Monday when you go into work. And it’s gotta change. And most people don’t even know that. If we let them know that, we can change the law across the country,” Biden said.
