Harold Ford Jr. Loves Gay Marriage Three Years After Fearing It

by Michael Jones · 2010-01-11 06:52:00 UTC
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Harold Ford Jr.Politicians changing their mind on gay marriage is nothing new, and generally, it's to be celebrated. Sen. Arlen Specter has done it. Sen. Chris Dodd has done it. Sen. Tom Harkin has done it. Even Bill Clinton has done it.

Now add to that list Harold Ford Jr., the former chair of the Democratic Leadership Council, and a former U.S. Representative from Tennessee now looking to run for the U.S. Senate in New York. Something to celebrate? Sure. It's always good to have another passenger on the marriage equality bus. But something that's a little surprising? Certainly, given Ford's past opposition to same-sex marriage.

In fact, just three years ago, Harold Ford Jr. blasted off on same-sex marriage, bragging about how he voted to prohibit same-sex couples from getting together. "I oppose gay marriage, and have voted twice in Congress to amend the United States Constitution to prohibit same-sex marriage," said Ford.  "[T]here's a referendum on the Tennessee ballot to ban same-sex marriage -- I am voting for it."

What a difference three years, not to mention a decision to high tail it to New York to run for U.S. Senate, can make. Now Ford loves gay marriage. He loves it so much, he wants to marry it.

"I'm a believer that benefits should flow to same sex partners and if indeed the fiction of the language, the title, should be changed, much like Chuck Schumer who changed his mind on it and Bill Clinton's evolved, I'm of the opinion now that nothing is wrong with that," Ford said of gay marriage.

Whether this change in opinion is genuine or not is hard to say. Supporting an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to ban gay marriage is a pretty serious offense. And it's not like that was something Ford championed two decades ago. That was in 2006.

But at the same time, there's some good news here. What is it? Simple. There might never be another Democrat, at least in the northeast, that can get nominated on a statewide level without supporting full marriage rights for gays and lesbians. And in some states -- say, Massachusetts -- a Republican is proving that you can't run for statewide office without at least admitting that same-sex marriage is settled law.

Folks should question the political timeliness of Ford's decision to come around on gay marriage. But they shouldn't question whether it's good news. There's just nothing bad about it.

Photo: lbrotherton

Michael Jones is a Change.org Editor. He has worked in the field of human rights communications for a decade, most recently for Harvard Law School.
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