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I was previously a constitutional law and civil rights litigator and am now a journalist. I am the author of three New York Times bestselling books -- "How Would a Patriot Act" (a critique of Bush executive power theories), "Tragic Legacy" (documenting the Bush legacy), and With Liberty and Justice for Some (critiquing America's two-tiered justice system and the collapse of the rule of law for its political and financial elites). My fifth book - No Place to Hide: Edward Snowden, the NSA and the US Surveillance State - will be released on April 29, 2014 by Holt/Metropolitan.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Email to reply to Andrew Sullivan


No doubt Glenn Greenwald will roll his eyes.

Come on, Andrew: that's beneath you.

I didn't criticize you for reacting emotionally to Obama's announcement. I said the opposite: that as one of the earliest same-sex marriage advocates, it's natural you'd be emotional. I myself wrote several pieces about its significance that many of my readers criticized as overly emotional and effusive. That isn't my issue at all.

I criticized you because you spent years mocking and belittling gay activists as needy, weak, "sad" children for craving the "acceptance of one man" -- only to turn around once Obama made his announcement and celebrated it on exactly those grounds, all without acknowledging that they were right and you were wrong all along: as it turns out, it does matter -- a lot -- that Obama came out in support of marriage equality. They weren't being "sad" in pressuring him to do this. They were being smart, shrewd and passionate activists. You apparently see that now, so you should say so. Your failure to do that (along with your view of Obama as "Father Figure") is what led to my criticism.

Along with anyone else working all these years for marriage equality, Evan Wolfson has my respect and deserves to celebrate this as much as he wants, as do you. That was never my problem with your remarks.