Court decision on gay marriage a victory for America, Obama says

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that gay marriage is legal nationwide is a “victory for America,” President Barack Obama said, declaring that justice had arrived for same-sex couples with “a thunderbolt.”

Obama called the decision the consequence of decades of activism by proponents of same-sex marriage, in a short speech at the White House Rose Garden. “Those countless, often anonymous heroes, they deserve our thanks,” he said. “They should be very proud.”

Before his remarks, Obama telephoned the lead plaintiff in the Supreme Court case, Jim Obergefell. Audio of his call was broadcast by CNN, which was in the middle of an interview with Obergefell when the president rang.

“Your leadership on this issue, you know, has changed the country,” Obama told him. “I couldn’t be prouder of you and your husband, God bless you.”

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The court ruled 5-4 that gay marriage is legal in every state and that all states must recognize marriages performed in any other. Justice Anthony Kennedy, a Republican appointee to the court, was joined by the four Democratic appointees in the majority opinion.

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