The Advocate on Obama

The Advocate interviewed a number of Obama's gay and lesbian friends, as well as gay leaders in Illinois, and reports that:

In interviews, more than a dozen of those old friends and other gay leaders in Illinois who’ve worked with Obama described more than a decade of consistent advocacy for gay civil rights. Their stories cast new light on Obama’s ties to antigay Christian leaders and on his tortured, though canny, position on marriage equality. They reveal long-lasting relationships with gay people that help explain his ease in talking about gay issues, and a legal disposition that helps account for his choice to speak about gay rights, even in settings where it’s not obviously in his best political interest to do so....

Tracy Baim, the publisher and executive editor of Chicago gay newspaper Windy City Times, has covered Obama since his first race for the Illinois state senate, in 1996. “He and Michelle don’t just come to gay events for political reasons,” she says. “They come because they understand the issues, and they have friends in the community. If he were to betray us, it would be personal.”

More here.