A Conflict of Interests

Gay activists have waited for the man they voted into office to throw them a bone, and none has come. So they’re going to start mounting the pressure for him to act, says the New York Times today. The article mentions that Obama could appoint a gay man or woman to fill Justice Souter’s vacancy on the Supreme Court, and gives a reaction from the opposition:

“That would be tantamount to opening the gate for the other side,” said Bishop Harry J. Jackson Jr. of the Hope Christian Church in Beltsville, Md., who is organizing protests in Washington, where the City Council passed an ordinance this week recognizing same-sex marriages in other states. “If he meant what he said about marriage then I think he has got to stand up and be a president who acts on his beliefs.”

The fact that this opposition comes from the pastor of a black church is telling. In California, Proposition 8 was heavily supported by black voters, who remain one of Obama’s key constituencies, and heavily opposed by most social liberals, obviously another key constituency for Obama. Keep an eye on the conflict between those two groups over same-sex marriage and the way Obama chooses to respond.