Obama’s a politician, certainly, and not above framing family issues using his family. But I don’t think we have to assume this is merely a dodge for a secret agenda. Dick Cheney’s pro-gay position derives not from agenda or ideology but from having a lesbian daughter. Much of the cultural shift happening in public attitudes on LGBTQ issues it’s coming from exposure to relatives, neighbors and classmates who defy the narrow-minded stereotypes. It would indeed be hard for Barack to sit at the White House dinner table and say his daughters’ friends’ parents marriages weren’t legitimate. These conversations were only a small part of his “evolution,” but I see no reason for dismissing them out of hand.