Americans against Congress defending DOMA by a 22-point margin

A new poll shows that a majority of voters are against the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as exclusively between one man and one woman and thereby excludes same-sex couples from receiving federal benefits. Late last month, President Obama declared DOMA unconstitutional and asked the Justice Department to stop defending it. House Speaker John Boehner unsurprisingly responded that the House of Representatives would defend DOMA.

But — as Obama may have oh-so-cleverly predicted — that defense may cost the Republican Party a lot of capital. Gay marriage is more accepted by Americans than ever before, and this new poll, released today by the Human Rights Campaign, shows that Americans are against defending DOMA by a staggering twenty-two-point margin. Only 32% of those polled think Congress should defend DOMA; 54% are against it. That's bad news for John Boehner, but good news if you think same-sex couples should have the same rights to Social Security benefits, homes, hospital visits, and pensions that heterosexual couples do.