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Joe Biden officiates gay wedding between White House staffers

<p>Vice President Joe Biden can now add &quot;wedding officiant&quot; to his resume.</p><p>Biden married a same-sex couple both White House staffers on Monday.</p><p>He&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/VP/status/760250205191012352" target="_blank">tweeted</a>: &quot;Proud to marry Brian and Joe at my house. Couldn&#39;t be happier, two longtime White House staffers, two great guys.&quot;</p><p><a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/08/joe-biden-officiates-wedding.html" target="_blank">According to</a>&nbsp;<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/vice-president-joe-biden-officiated-wedding-sex-couple/story?id=41058123" target="_blank">media</a>&nbsp;<a href="http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Vice-President-Officiates-Wedding-of-Two-White-House-Staffers-388895492.html" target="_blank">reports</a>, it was Biden&#39;s first time officiating a wedding.</p><p>Jill Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/DrBiden/status/760275082937786369" target="_blank">tweeted</a>, &quot;Love is love!&quot;</p><p><b>SEE MORE: <a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/the-us-navy-is-honoring-gay-rights-activist-harvey-milk/">The US Navy Is Honoring Gay Rights Activist Harvey Milk</a></b></p><p>Biden officiating a same-sex wedding shouldn&#39;t be surprising.</p><p>&quot;This is all about a simple proposition: Who do you love?&quot; Biden said during an interview on&nbsp;<a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/video/flashback-bidens-2012-endorsement-of-same-sex-marriage-471856195543" target="_blank">&quot;Meet the Press.&quot;</a>&nbsp;&quot;I am absolutely comfortable with the fact that men marrying men, women marrying women and heterosexual men and women marrying are entitled to the same exact rights.&quot;</p><p>Biden made that statement in 2012 as the re-election campaign was ramping up. At the time, President Barack Obama&nbsp;<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/07/us/politics/biden-expresses-support-for-same-sex-marriages.html?_r=0" target="_blank">hadn&#39;t endorsed</a>&nbsp;same-sex marriage, but he did support civil unions.</p><p>Unnamed sources&nbsp;<a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2012/05/obama-expected-to-speak-on-gay-marriage-076103" target="_blank">told Politico</a>&nbsp;that moment forced the administration&#39;s hand in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2012/05/09/gIQAivsWDU_story.html?tid=a_inl" target="_blank">supporting gay marriage</a>.</p><p>&quot;I think same-sex couples should be able to get married,&quot; Obama&nbsp;<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/video/obama-sex-marriage-legal-16312940" target="_blank">told ABC</a>&nbsp;a few days later.</p><p>No word if Biden will continue officiating weddings when he leaves office in January. CNN reports he was only temporarily certified to marry the staffers.</p><p><i>This video includes clips from&nbsp;</i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iap8kpHRsA" target="_blank"><i>the White House</i></a><i>,&nbsp;</i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sd-7evplVrc" target="_blank"><i>C-SPAN</i></a><i>&nbsp;and&nbsp;</i><i><a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/president-obama-talks-about-endorsement-for-joe-biden-in-2016-campaign/" target="_blank">CBS</a></i><i>&nbsp;and images from&nbsp;</i><a href="https://twitter.com/VP/status/760250205191012352" target="_blank"><i>Twitter / @VP</i></a><i>&nbsp;and Getty Images. Music provided courtesy of APM Music.</i></p><hr><b>Trending stories at <a href="http://www.newsy.com">Newsy.com</a></b><ul class="inline-related-links"><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/each-presidential-ticket-is-now-set-as-jill-stein-picks-a-running-mate/">Each Presidential Ticket Is Now Set As Jill Stein Picks A Running Mate</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/how-george-w-bush-responded-to-criticism-from-a-gold-star-parent/">How George W. Bush Responded To Criticism From A Gold Star Parent</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/donald-trump-says-the-rnc-was-a-huge-success-the-polls-don-t-agree/">Donald Trump Says The RNC Was A Huge Success; The Polls Don&#039;t Agree</a></li></ul>
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden has officiated a gay wedding, a first for the early proponent of same-sex marriage.

Biden presided over the union of Joe Mahshie and Brian Mosteller, both longtime White House aides. The White House says the couple asked Biden to officiate.

Biden has never officiated a wedding before, so he got a special temporary certification from the District of Columbia to make it legal.

The afternoon ceremony took place Monday at the Naval Observatory, the vice president's official residence, with immediate family attending.

Biden publicly backed gay marriage in 2012 in the run-up to President Barack Obama's re-election. The announcement put pressure on Obama to declare his own support shortly after.

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