Vice President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the Clean Energy Investment Summit hosted by the White House in Washington DC, June 16, 2015. Thursday, Biden took part in the Let Love Rule event that celebrated the Supreme Court's ruling legalizing gay marriage. File Photo by Molly Riley/UPI |
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NEW YORK, July 10 (UPI) -- Vice President Joe Biden praised the Supreme Court's ruling legalizing same-sex marriage Thursday night, saying he's "never been so happy to be with an outfit that's going out of business" yet more work needs to be done.
Speaking at the Freedom to Marry's New York gala, Biden told hundreds they were courageous and praised the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community for their tireless work. The event, in lower Manhattan, marked a stopping point for Freedom to Marry, a group that has been pushing the legalization of same-sex marriage for three decades.
"You risked a great deal," Biden said. "I've risked nothing holding this position I've held for many years."
Biden, a longtime champion of LGBT rights, was the guest of honor at the Freedom to Marry event. Evan Wolfson, the organization's founder and president once interned with Biden when Biden was a U.S. senator.
Biden recounted his early days of the fight for equal rights. In 1987, Biden, then on the Senate Judiciary Committee, helped put a stop to the confirmation of conservative Robert Bork to the Supreme Court. President Ronald Reagan ultimately nominated Anthony Kennedy, who played a decisive role in last month's ruling.
"I've never been so happy to be with an outfit that's going out of business," Biden said.
Biden, who is considering a run for the Democratic nomination for president, said the next battle will be exposing "the ugliness of employment discrimination" that results from sexual-orientation discrimination on the job.
"There are 32 states where you can be married in the morning and fired in the afternoon," he said. "There's still more steps to take."
