He has issued an order directing the Department of Health and Human Services to mandate that hospitals extend visitation rights to gay partners, as well as requiring hospitals to recognize power of attorney for same sex couples.

Of course, the actual rule is still months away, but my guess is that John Aravosis’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Give donor boycott has finally developed critical mass, and the fund raisers are beginning to notice.

So, now we know, that, if absolutely backed into a corner, Barack Obama is willing to take the most timid steps for LGBT civil rights.

3 cheers.