President Obama remains opposed to same-sex marriage despite a federal judge's decision to strike down a ban on such marriages.

Senior adviser David Axelrod said the president supports "equality" for gay and lesbian couples, but did not address directly Obama's position on Wednesday's court ruling, which struck down as unconstitutional California's Proposition 8, a 2008 ballot initiative banning same-sex marriage in the state.

"The president opposed Proposition 8 at the time — he felt it was divisive and mean spirited," said Axelrod, adding that Obama believes that governing marriage is "an issue for the states."

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