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February 24, 2011

Admin Withdraws Support for DOMA 
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The Obama administration has dropped its backing of the 1996 Defense of
Marriage Act, or DOMA, which denies federal recognition of gay marriage.
On Tuesday, the White House said Tuesday it would no longer defend the
measure in two ongoing lawsuits against it. The law is the last major
federal statute to openly target gays and lesbians, following last
year's repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, which bans openly
gay people to serve in the military. The administration had previously
maintained it opposed DOMA, but was obligated to defend it as an
existing federal law.



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