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Obama Administration Argues States Can't Force Federal Govt to Offer Same Sex Benefits

Saturday, October 31st, 2009

States that allow gay marriage cannot force the federal government to provide benefits to those couples, the Obama administration argued yesterday in court papers in a lawsuit by the State of Massachusetts.

The Justice Department is at odds with Massachusetts – the first state to allow gay marriage – over a 1996 federal law defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman. Massachusetts sued in July, saying that law is discriminatory and deprives gay couples in the state of some federal spousal benefits.

The Obama administration agrees the Defense of Marriage Act is discriminatory and wants it repealed, but says it has an obligation to defend laws enacted by Congress while they are on the books and can be reasonably defended.

Full Story from Boston.com: http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/10/31/us_says_mass_cant_force_spousal_benefits/

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Posted in defense of marriage act, doma, federal benefits, Gay Marriage, massachusetts lawsuit | No Responses »

John Kerry Supports New DOMA Lawsuit

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Massachusetts Senator John Kerry says he supports a new lawsuit against the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

Tim Coco and Genesio “Junior” Oliveira, a binational gay couple, announced Monday they would challenge the 13-year-old law that bans the federal government from recognizing the marriages of gay and lesbian couples.

Oliveira, 30, returned to his native Brazil in 2007 after an immigration judged denied his request for asylum. He sought asylum in the U.S. in 2002 because he said he was raped as a teenager. In March, Senator Kerry sent a letter asking for intervention in the matter to Attorney General Eric Holder. On Friday, Coco told the AP that the deadline for Holder to act had passed without action from the administration, effectively supporting Oliveira’s denial of asylum and keeping the men apart.

Full Story from On Top Magazine: http://ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=4773&MediaType=1&Category=26

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Posted in binational couple, defense of marriage act, doma, Gay Marriage, john kerry, supports | No Responses »

Senator Arlen Spector Changes His Mind on Gay Marriage

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Arlen Specter, the Democrat senator for Pennsylvania, has changed his mind on the issue of gay marriage.

In 1996, he voted for the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which prohibits the federal government from recognising gay marriage. In 2006, he voted for a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage in his state.

But writing in the Huffington Post this week, Specter said it was time to repeal DOMA and allow states to decide for themselves.  He wrote: “Enacted 13 years ago when the idea of same sex marriage was struggling for acceptance, the Act is a relic of a more tradition-bound time and culture.

Full Story from : http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2009/10/28/pennsylvania-senator-changes-mind-on-gay-marriage/

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Posted in arlen spector, defense of marriage act, doma, Gay Marriage, Senator | No Responses »

Bill to Repeal DOMA Has More Than 100 Sponsors

Wednesday, October 14th, 2009

Sponsors of the Respect for Marriage Act said Tuesday the bill has exceeded 100 co-sponsors.

Representatives Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Jared Polis (D-CO) introduced the bill that would repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) at a Washington outdoor press conference in September.

DOMA was signed into law by President Bill Clinton 13 years ago. The law defines marriage as a heterosexual union for federal agencies and allows states to ignore gay marriages performed in other states. Under DOMA legally married gay and lesbian couples cannot access federal benefits, including Social Security and pensions.

Full Story from On Top Magazine: http://www.ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=4703&MediaType=1&Category=26

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Posted in 100 house sponsors, defense of marriage act, doma, repeal | No Responses »

Gay Rights Activists Disappointed that Obama Offered No Timetable for DADT, DOMA Repeal

Sunday, October 11th, 2009

The morning after President Obama’s “big gay speech” — as gay bloggers dubbed his Saturday night address to the Human Rights Campaign — gay rights advocates are preparing to march from the White House to the Capitol building this afternoon.

The demonstration, set to begin at noon, is intended to pressure Mr. Obama to make good on his campaign promises to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” There was plenty of speculation from gays and politicos alike that he might start one, or both, of these efforts from the podium Saturday night–neither happened.

“President Obama gets an “F” for his speech tonight on gay rights,” wrote Kevin Naff, the editor of The Washington Blade, a gay issues newspaper in Washington D.C., as he bemoaned the absence of a timetable for Mr. Obama’s pledges. “This wasn’t so much a policy speech as a recitation of old campaign promises reheated for a breathless audience on its feet.”

Full Story from the NY Times: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/11/sunday-word-big-gay-march/

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Posted in congress, defense of marriage act, don't ask don't tell, president obama, repeal, timetable | No Responses »

Obama Calls on Congress to Repeal Defense of Marriage Act, Don't Ask Don't Tell

Sunday, October 11th, 2009

President Barack Obama restated his campaign pledge to allow homosexual men and women to serve openly in the military, but many in his audience of gay activists were left wondering when he would make good on the promise.

“I will end ‘don’t ask-don’t tell,’” Obama said Saturday night to a standing ovation from the crowd of about 3,000 at the annual dinner of the Human Rights Campaign, a gay civil rights advocacy group. He offered no timetable or specifics and he acknowledged some may be growing impatient.

“I appreciate that many of you don’t believe progress has come fast enough,” Obama said. “Do not doubt the direction we are heading and the destination we will reach.”

Full Story from AP: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hZUjpkw6hIX3KDjuV8xK0idc_H0wD9B8UFGG2

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Posted in congress, defense of marriage act, don't ask don't tell, president obama, repeal | No Responses »

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