Rob Portman, a Republican Senator from Ohio, announced this week that he has changed his stance on marriage equality. He cited his son’s coming out as part of his decision. This makes him the first sitting Republican senator to support same-sex marriage. On Thursday, Portman met with Ohio media and announced his position in support of marriage equality, more than two years after his son, Will, came out to his family as gay.
The decision of Portman to support marriage equality comes in a timely manner, only about a week before the Supreme Court hears oral arguments in regard to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Portman voted in favor of the DOMA in 1996, but now has changed his stance noting the inequality between his three children and his desire for them to have equal opportunities. Although he still says he prefers to let states decide what the definition of marriage is, he writes in the Columbus Dispatch, “I have come to believe that if two people are prepared to make a lifetime commitment to love and care for each other in good times, and in bad, the government shouldn’t deny them the opportunity to get married.”
As the first Republican senator to demonstrate his support for same-sex marriage, Portman is projected to make a considerable impact on the repeal of DOMA. Read Portman’s opinion piece for the Columbus Dispatch here: .
Rob Portman, a Republican Senator from Ohio, announced this week that he has changed his stance on marriage equality. He cited his son’s coming out as part of his decision. This makes him the first sitting Republican senator to support same-sex marriage. On Thursday, Portman met with Ohio media and announced his position in support of marriage equality, more than two years after his son, Will, came out to his family as gay.
