Hillary Clinton: I Did Not Embrace Gay Marriage for Political Reasons
Sounding irked by an NPR host's question to clarify her stance on gay marriage, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton argued that did she did not change her position and embrace same-sex marriage last year for political reasons.
Speaking with NPR's Terry Gross on Thursday, Clinton accused the host of being "very persistent" and playing with her words when asked about her support for same-sex marriage.
"No, I don't think you are trying to clarify," Clinton said. "I think you are trying to say that I used to be opposed and now I am in favor and I did it for political reasons. And that's just flat wrong. So let me just state what I feel like you are implying and repudiate it."
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Clinton added that she has a strong record on LGBT issues: "I have a great commitment to this issue and I am proud of what I've done and the progress we're making."
In March 2013, a week before the Supreme Court ruled on two major cases concerning the future of gay marriage in America, Clinton released a video detailing her decision to support same-sex marriage.
"LGBT Americans are our colleagues, our teachers, our soldiers, our friends and our loved ones, and they are full and equal citizens and deserve the rights of citizenship. That includes marriage," Clinton said in the 5-minute video posted by The Human Rights campaign.
"That's why I support marriage for lesbian and gay couples. I support it personally and as a matter of policy and law."
Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton, signed the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996, which defined marriage as between one man and one woman. He later stated that the law is unconstitutional and should be overturned.
When asked by Gross if Clinton's views had evolved since the 1990s, when she was not supporting same-sex marriage, Clinton said: "I'm an American ... I think that we have all evolved and it's been one of the fastest, most sweeping transformations that I'm aware of."
The former first lady is on a media tour for her new book Hard Choices, which talks about her time in President Barack Obama's administration. Clinton, who has yet to announce whether she will make a second run for president, touched on a number of other issues in the NPR interview. She spoke about making a "mistake" voting for the Iraq War Resolution during former President George W. Bush's term, and about her campaign supporting women's rights in other countries, among other topics.
