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Obama Pushes for Marriage Equality On Eve of IL Vote

barack_obama_thumbThe Illinois state legislature has until tomorrow to vote on the marriage equality bill, but they’ve gotten a big nudge from an alumnus President Obama. At a fundraiser in Chicago yesterday, Obama told the audience that he wants to see the measure pass.

“Here in Illinois, we’ve got a vote on same-sex marriage that’s going to be coming up in the Legislature,” Obama said. “ I just want to say for the record it’s something that I deeply support. I wrestled with this for a long time and I am absolutely convinced it is the right thing to do. And we have to make sure that wherever we go, we are reminding people that the essence of America is that everybody is treated equally under the law without exception.”

Meanwhile, supporters of the bill are trying to nail down the last few votes. The bill needs 60 to pass, and vote counters say that they are close to that goal. but not quite there. A lot of pressure is being placed on black legislators, most of whom have not made their views on the bill known. Unlike Minnesota and Delaware, where the final votes were a done deal before it happened, Illinois looks like it will be a squeaker.

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