President Obama’s announcement yesterday that he supports full marriage equality for gay and lesbian American is nothing less than historic. For the first time, a sitting U.S. President has come out in strong, full support of full equality.

As The New York Times points out, the ideal of family has played a prominent role in Republican campaigns, but is it still a worthy goal for public policy? Within the past several years, especially since Ted Olson and David Boies came together to bring AFER’s lawsuit challenging Prop. 8, no longer is the debate about marriage for gay and lesbian couples an issue that divides our country, but a value that brings it closer together.