Why DADT Repeal is More Popular Than Marriage Equality

The repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" and marriage equality, on the surface, are similar policy issues. Both deal with equal rights for gays and lesbians. Both sharply divide liberal and conservative activists and politicians; the same lobbyist groups and think tanks tend to study and push the two issues in tandem.

But when it comes to public opinion, you have two very different issues: support for the repeal of DADT has skyrocketed in the last two decades, while support for marriage equality is stagnant.

Three quarters of Americans support the service of openly gay Americans, up from 62 percent in early 2001 and 44 percent in 1993, according to ABC/Washington Post polls. There has been a dramatic shift particularly among conservatives: a May 2009 Gallup poll shows their support for repealing DADT has jumped from 46 to 58 percent in just the past five years. The issue has momentum at the federal level: Obama brought up DADT in his State of the Union address, and the Senate has followed up on the issue with hearings in the Armed Services Committee.

Full Story from Newsweek
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