Barack Obama’s mantra of change has inspired young and old, liberal and conservative, Democrat and Republican. While calls for change have become recycled rhetoric, Obama has convinced many that his promises won’t be relegated to the closet if elected. Some, however, aren’t buying it, including one staunchly liberal demographic—homosexuals.

In a recent ABC News interview, Obama infuriated gay rights advocates when he declared allegiance to the traditional view of marriage. “You know, I believe that marriage is between a man and a woman,” he told Jake Tapper. Like John McCain, he feels states should decide the gay marriage question.

Not surprisingly, the homosexual community responded harshly. The American Spectator’s David N. Bass reports that one lesbian blogger said: “If I hear ‘Marriage is between one man and one woman’ one more time from Obama’s mouth—or any Democrats mouth—I’m going to scream. How is this change? Leadership? Hope? Or do only straight people get to hope?” On the Reuters blog, Peter Henderson quotes one gay rights advocate as saying, “He was a civil rights lawyer. It just seems weird to me that he doesn’t think we should have full civil rights.”

Such a controversy, however, is unlikely to make huge difference come November. Unlike the riff in the Anglican Church over homosexuality, this disagreement among Liberals and Democrats will not bring schism. But it does show us something important: Mr. Obama is not as committed to radical change (at least regarding same-sex marriage) as some believe, or want him to be. As Bass puts it:

This underlines the tension that, for years, has seethed between the Democratic Party bosses and homosexual-rights activists on the issue of marriage. The far left wants strong rhetoric and actions to back it up. Politicians have elections to think about. . . . Obama is hardly the Democrats’ perfect savior. And at least on this one issue, he’s anything but the candidate of change.