welcome back. one of the most stunning moments in the republican presidential campaign came last month. take a look.
>> in 2010 when i was deployed to iraq, i had to lie about who i was, because i’m a gay soldier. do you intend to circumvent the progress that’s been made for gay and lesbian soldiers in the military?
>> booing a u.s. serviceman. they are fighting for equal rights. snyder joined gay and lesbian service members today, filing a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the federal ban on gay marriage. joining me now is joshua snyder, the husband of captain hill, one of the plaintiffs in this case. thanks for being here, joshua.
>> thank you, reverend sharpton. what was your reaction when they booed steve?
>> um, we didn’t really notice the booing. we were overtaken by the whole moment. we kind of really got more of a reaction to the response from his service members as well as friends. a lot of support.
>> let me show you what president obama said about the —
>> we don’t believe the kind of smallness that says it’s okay for a stage full of political leaders, one of whom could end up being the president of the united states, being silent when an american soldier is booed. you want to be commander in chief, you can start by standing up for the men and women who wear the uniform of the united states, even when it’s not politically convenient.
>> now, that’s how the president responded. what a lot of us were struck by is, you may not have heard the booing, and your husband, but the candidates on that stage, the republican candidates heard it and none of them said anything. that spoke volumes to us in their silence.
>> it would have been nice to get some support, but you know what? we got the question and the response from the candidates.
>> now, getting the question out there. you were part of a lawsuit filed today. a lot of people don’t understand it, even with don’t ask/don’t tell things that are not covered are what you are trying to deal with in this lawsuit. let me show this screen to the american public. benefits not provided to same-sex military couples. we must remember now, these are people that are in the service in many dangerous places around the country. health benefits, more real and welfare programs, access to military bases. so most people did not know that none of this is protected, just don’t ask/don’t tell.
>> correct.
>> your lawsuit is to make sure you get simple, basic things like i’ve just outlined, rights to national cemeteries. am i right? you just want to be treated like any other human couple that put themselves in danger’s way for the country.
>> steven is doing the same thing as any other soldier, and we’re legally married, we just want the same rights.
>> if you’re legally married, whatever people’s views, you’re saying then treat me like i’m legally married, don’t say i’m legally married, but then take away the rights i would have that any other married couple would have for someone putting their life on the line for this country?
>> exactly.
>> well, josh snyder, thank you so much, thank you for your reaction to what happened.
>> thank you, reverend.
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