Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley said Thursday that he’s glad former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has “come around” on the issues of gay marriage and immigration.
“I’m glad Secretary Clinton’s come around to the right positions on these issues,” Mr. O’Malley told the Guardian at a forum at Harvard’s Institute of Politics. “I believe that we are best as a party when we lead with our principles and not according to the polls.”
“Leadership is about making the right decision, and the best decision before sometimes it becomes entirely popular,” said Mr. O’Malley, a Democrat weighing a 2016 presidential run.
As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to weigh in on the issue, Mrs. Clinton’s team said this week that the former secretary of state and 2016 Democratic presidential candidate thinks same-sex marriage is a constitutionally-protected right; last year during an interview with NPR, she had said it was a matter left to the states.
And in 2007, she stumbled over whether she would support driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants before clarifying that she would not. A campaign representative told the Huffington Post this week that Mrs. Clinton does now support state policies to provide driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants.
As Maryland governor, Mr. O’Malley signed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in the state in 2012 and has also signed legislation allowing illegal immigrants to get driver’s licenses.
The Guardian also reported that Mr. O’Malley endorsed a national minimum wage of $15 per hour and said he raised the minimum wage in Maryland to $10.10 an hour but would have gone higher with legislative support. He said he would decided on whether to run for president by the end of May.
“It’s a colossal undertaking, and there are many different components of [a presidential race]”, he said. “Organization, policy, personnel — it’s a lot to put together.
“I’ve never run a bad race, and I don’t intend to start now — if I were to do this,” he added.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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