Conservative Groups Fight To Save DOMA

Socially conservative groups have begun mounting a campaign to pressure incoming members of Congress to resist efforts to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
President-elect Barack Obama and a large number of Democrats have called for the measure, which bars the federal government from recognizing same-sex relationships, to be overturned.
Although Obama opposes same-sex marriage, he supports civil unions. His transition team Web site says the President-elect “supports full civil unions that give same-sex couples legal rights and privileges equal to those of married couples.”
“Obama also believes we need to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and enact legislation that would ensure that the 1,100+ federal legal rights and benefits currently provided on the basis of marital status are extended to same-sex couples in civil unions and other legally-recognized unions.” the transition site says.
“These rights and benefits include the right to assist a loved one in times of emergency, the right to equal health insurance and other employment benefits, and property rights.”
He also supports adoption rights for all couples “regardless of their sexual orientation.”
The campaign to preserve DOMA is being mounted by the Alliance for Marriage Foundation, the same group behind two failed attempts to advance an amendment to the US Constitution to bar same-sex marriage.