On Wednesday, every cable news network threw up the “Breaking News” banner and ran with the earth-shaking news: Pres. Obama now supports gay marriage. He had supported civil unions in the 2008 election, but he had always hedged on supporting full marriage rights to gay couples. After Vice President Joe Biden came out for gay marriage on Meet the Press on Sunday, Pres. Obama discussed his gradual change of heart in an ABC interview on Wednesday (you can see the full video here).

It’s an interesting and emotional moment in the American human rights movement, and I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t get a little bit misty when Obama described his discussions with his wife and two daughters, using the wording: “…it wouldn’t dawn on them that somehow their friends’ parents would be treated differently. It doesn’t make sense to them and, frankly, that’s the kind of thing that prompts a change in perspective.”

Honestly, it would have never occurred to me that the part about Obama sitting down with his wife and daughters would be the part that some people would latch on to and attack. Which brings me to this – Bristol Palin (or more specifically, Bristol Palin’s blog ghostwriter) has decided to weigh in. And her views (her ghostwriter’s views) are just as hypocritical and ridiculous as you’d guess. Bristol titled her blog post “Hail to the Chiefs – Malia and Sasha Obama”. You can already feel where this is headed, right?

Is anyone really surprised by the fact that President Obama came out of the closet for gay marriage? What was most surprising is when he explained how his position (supposedly) “evolved,” by talking to his wife and daughters:

“It’s interesting, some of this is also generational,” the president continued. “You know when I go to college campuses, sometimes I talk to college Republicans who think that I have terrible policies on the economy, on foreign policy, but are very clear that when it comes to same-sex equality or, you know, sexual orientation, that they believe in equality. They are much more comfortable with it. You know, Malia and Sasha, they have friends whose parents are same-sex couples. There have been times where Michelle and I have been sitting around the dinner table and we’re talking about their friends and their parents and Malia and Sasha, it wouldn’t dawn on them that somehow their friends’ parents would be treated differently. It doesn’t make sense to them and, frankly, that’s the kind of thing that prompts a change in perspective.”

Let’s pause for just one second. When Christian women run for high office, people inevitably bring up the question of submission. Once, Michele Bachmann, for example, was asked during a debate, “As president, would you be submissive to your husband?”
People automatically assume that a Christian female President isn’t capable of making decisions without her spouse’s stamp of approval. (I should add female Republican candidates –liberal women don’t get the same kind of questions.)

So are all those reporters who feared excessive family intervention in the White House all up in arms over the President’s announcement yesterday? Um. Not quite. Liberals everywhere are applauding him for his bravery and his wisdom.

So let me get this straight – it’s a problem if my mom listened too much to my dad, but it’s a heroic act if the President made a massive change in a policy position that could affect the entire nation after consulting with his teenage daughters?

While it’s great to listen to your kids’ ideas, there’s also a time when dads simply need to be dads. In this case, it would’ve been helpful for him to explain to Malia and Sasha that while her friends parents are no doubt lovely people, that’s not a reason to change thousands of years of thinking about marriage. Or that – as great as her friends may be – we know that in general kids do better growing up in a mother/father home. Ideally, fathers help shape their kids’ worldview.

In this situation, it was the other way around. I guess we can be glad that Malia and Sasha aren’t younger, or perhaps today’s press conference might have been about appointing Dora the Explorer as Attorney General because of her success in stopping Swiper the Fox.

Sometimes dads should lead their family in the right ways of thinking. In this case, it would’ve been nice if the President would’ve been an actual leader and helped shape their thoughts instead of merely reflecting what many teenagers think after one too many episodes of Glee.

[From Bristol’s blog]

I understand (sort of) the social conservative argument against gay marriage. I mean, I don’t agree with their argument, but I understand the gist of the argument. But here’s a question, social conservatives: is Bristol Palin the best person to be making your argument? Or does she come across as a convoluted, asinine hypocrite? Bristol Palin, a single, never-married mother whose family systematically pushed out and attacked her baby-daddy, thinks all kids should have a mom and a dad, and that’s why there should be no gay marriage. And she’s absolutely horrified at the idea of a father (who, in Bristol’s mind, is absolutely necessary and that’s why lesbians shouldn’t raise babies) would actually listen to his daughters thoughts, opinions and world views. Is it offensive that the president loves and respects the women in his life so much that these women influence him and change him and make him grow as a man and as a leader?

And of course, the Glee reference. Look, I don’t like Glee either, but I think it’s crass that Glee is being used a unsubtle code for “the President’s daughters watch TV shows about gay people and the show is going to turn them gay and then they’ll influence their father who loves gay people. GAY!! BE AFRAID.” Is that the punchline? Because Lindsay Lohan is going to be on Glee. And I doubt her appearance is going to influence people to be crackheads. Although I do anxiously await that Bristol blog post.

I guess I shouldn’t get my panties in a twist about this, though. It’s not like Bristol wrote it herself. And before anyone starts yelling about Bristol not being a celebrity and not being worthy of this kind of attention …please. Dancing With the Stars. Tabloid cover stories and interviews. She’s a celebrity. She’s like a Kardashian, only the real Kardashians support gay rights.

Photos courtesy of WENN.