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Saturday, May 18th, 2013
Senate Democrats are considering offering an amendment to include gay and lesbian binational couples to the immigration reform bill on the floor instead of in committee. The Washington Blade explains:
Late Thursday, Politico reported that Democrats are asking the White House to tell Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) to withhold amendments for bi-national same-sex couples until the larger measure reaches the Senate floor — where passage will likely be more difficult. “They’re increasingly uneasy about risking Republican support but reluctant to tell gay rights advocates that an amendment allowing American citizens to seek green cards for their same-sex foreign partners may not get a vote in the Judiciary Committee,” Politico reported. Concern over the amendments follows remarks from Republican Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) — as well as comments from Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) to the Washington Blade — that including the pro-gay language would kill immigration reform.
Their mistake was to not include it in the original bill, where it would have been much harder to strip out. Senate Dems must be hoping the US Supreme Court will step in with their DOMA decision and take this decision off their hands.
Posted in Bi-National Couples, Immigration, Politicians, US Senate, US Supreme Court | No Responses »
Tags: binational couples, democrats, immigration reform, us senate, usa
Friday, May 17th, 2013
As the end of the Supreme Court term and the release of its final opinions gets closer, more legal experts are weighing in with predictions and thoughts on which outcome in the marriage cases seems the most likely. As EqualityOnTrial has reported, there are lots of complicated options with different outcomes (ranging from good to relatively bad) and just looking at Hollingsworth v. Perry, the Prop 8 case, there’s no consensus on what will happen, though most people who have commented on the case believe the result will be narrow.
Two others recently offered their own thoughts and predictions: Laurence Tribe, who has done LGBT rights work before (most notably arguing before the Supreme Court in Bowers v. Hardwick, but also arguing National Gay Task Force v. Board of Education a year prior to Bowers) wrote commentary on the cases, while former Justice John Paul Stevens made his predictions while speaking at an event in Arlington.
Tribe, a Harvard Law professor, believes the decisions in both the Prop 8 and DOMA cases will be narrow, but he suggested that the result of the Court’s decisions would be that neither law will remain standing.
Authored By Scottie Thomaston – See the Full Story at Equality on Trial
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Posted in DOMA, Marriage Equality/Gay Marriage, Prop 8, US Supreme Court | No Responses »
Tags: defense of marriage act, doma, Gay Marriage, marriage equality, prop 8, same sex marriage, supreme court, usa
Friday, May 17th, 2013
As the country has moved toward marriage equality, fewer and fewer democrats and independents support the idea of civil unions. The Dish reports:
The changing political composition of civil union supporters shows that the center of gravity of this debate has shifted significantly. The civil union option has moved from being a middle way dominated by political moderates a decade ago to one that is, today, most attractive to political conservatives. And looking ahead, there is evidence that the civil union option may have a limited future, at least if younger Americans are any indication. When given a three-way choice, civil unions are the least popular option among Millennials (Americans born after 1980).
It makes sense, as progressives shift to marriage equality and conservatives grab onto civil unions in the hope that they can slow or stall the marriage equality wave.
Posted in Civil Unions/Domestic Partnerships, Marriage Equality/Gay Marriage, Polls | No Responses »
Tags: civil unions, Gay Marriage, marriage equality, same sex marriage, study, usa
Monday, May 13th, 2013
A Gallup poll shows support for gay marriage at or above 50% for the third time. The Advocate reports:
For the third consecutive time, a public opinion poll by Gallup found support for same-sex marriage over the 50% threshold. The latest study, conducted in the first week of May, found that 53% of 1,535 respondents believe same-sex marriage should be legal nationwide, with 45% stating the opposite. Those numbers tied Gallup’s poll in May 2011, while a poll in November 2012 found 50% supported marriage equality and 48% reported opposition.
The Gallup website has more details:
Nearly all U.S. subgroups are more likely to favor gay marriage now than in the past. Politically, Democrats, independents, and liberals all show increasing support for gay marriage over time, with each well above the majority level now. Republicans, conservatives, and moderates are more likely to favor gay marriage now than in 1996, but the increase in support among these groups may have stalled. Thus, most of the increase in the percentage favoring legal gay marriage in the last three years has come among left-leaning groups politically.
Queerty has another interesting note about the survey:
But where the Gallup poll contributes some real insight is how those asked think the rest of the country feels about marriage equality. By a whopping 63%, the respondents think that most Americans oppose marriage equality. In other words, the majority thinks it’s the minority and doesn’t know otherwise. What accounts for the disconnect? As much as it might dismay pollsters, most Americans don’t spend their days lovingly reviewing public opinion surveys. The real question, though, is how tentative are people in expressing their beliefs if they think most people are against them. Could there be a drag on the momentum for marriage equality if the public think it’s still something only about a third of Americans support?
Interesting…
Posted in Marriage Equality/Gay Marriage, Polls, USA | No Responses »
Tags: gallup poll, Gay Marriage, marriage equality, same sex marriage, usa
Wednesday, May 8th, 2013
A lesbian couple embarked on a marriage road trip across the USA, getting married nine times. Gay Star News reports:
Most people would be embarrassed to admit they had been married nine times. It usually implies a lot of failed relationships. But not for happy couple Kacey and Chwanda who decided to take all their seven children on an ‘I do’ marathon from Illinois to New York to Canada. Kacey told Out: ‘Chwanda was like, “we gonna get married all them times?” And I’m like, “Yeah!” Once I started, I couldn’t stop: If I’m gonna do something, I’m gonna do it big!’
Congrats to the happy couple, and here’s hoping that one day soon, a single wedding and marriage will be recognized across all 50 states.
Posted in Marriage Equality/Gay Marriage, USA, Weddings | 1 Response »
Tags: lesbian couple, road trip, usa, weddings
Monday, May 6th, 2013
Good news from a new Pew Research Center poll – a huge majority of young adults born after 1980 support marriage equality. Salon reports:
While support for same-sex marriage has risen sharply among all age groups compared to even a decade ago, so-called “Millennials” (people born after 1980) are by far the most likely to say gay men and lesbians should be able to marry legally. In a March survey by the Pew Research Center, fully 70% of Millennials said they supported same-sex marriage. The report attributed much of the overall opinion shift to the arrival of that generation on the scene.
It’s largely because of this generation that marriage equality is slowly becoming inevitable. Whether or not the the US Supreme Court strikes down DOMA and Prop 8, it will happen. And probably sooner rather than later.
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Posted in Marriage Equality/Gay Marriage, Polls, USA | No Responses »
Tags: Gay Marriage, marriage equality, millennials, poll, same sex marriage, usa
Wednesday, May 1st, 2013
Sponsors of the bill to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act is being held by its sponsors pending the US Supreme Court ruling, Towleroad.com says:
Lawmakers are holding off on introducing legislation that would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act until after the Supreme Court rules on the anti-gay law, according to multiple sources familiar with the bill, as one Republican LGBT organization expects Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) to sign on as a co-sponsor. A number of LGBT advocates familiar with the legislation, which has been known as the Respect for Marriage Act, told the Washington Blade its lead sponsors — Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) in the House and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) in the Senate — are delaying introduction until after the expected court ruling in June.
Makes sense, since the House would never go along with it anyway. Maybe they could pass ENDA in the meantime?
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Posted in DOMA, Marriage Equality/Gay Marriage, US House, US Senate, US Supreme Court | No Responses »
Tags: congress, defense of marriage act, doma, us supreme court, usa
Monday, April 29th, 2013
Now that Rhode Island is on the cusp of legalizing gay marriage, which other states could be next? LGBTQ Nation reports:
At least six states are actively considering same-sex marriage legislation, three of which could see passage this year.
Delaware: The state’s House approved a bill last week legalizing same-sex marriage on a 23-18 vote. The bill now moves to the Senate. The measure has the support of Democratic Gov. Jack Markell. Recent polling finds a majority of Delaware voters support legalizing same-sex marriage. Delaware approved same-sex civil unions last year.
Illinois: The state’s Senate approved a marriage equality bill on Valentine’s Day. Supporters in the House say they’re still a few votes short but hope a vote is held before the General Assembly adjourns this spring.
Wanna place bets on which one gets there first? I think it will be Delaware…
Posted in Delaware, Illinois, Marriage Equality/Gay Marriage, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island | No Responses »
Tags: Gay Marriage, marriage equality, rhode island, same sex marriage, states, usa
Sunday, April 28th, 2013
A conservative political action commmittee is trying to convince more republicans to support marriage equality. On Top Magazine reports:
American Unity PAC launched last year with an initial $1 million donation from hedge fund manager Paul Singer. The Super PAC’s mission is to encourage Republican candidates to support marriage equality by lending financial support. Its new lobbying organization, American Unity Fund, has already spent more than $250,000 in Minnesota, where a marriage bill has cleared House and Senate panels and awaits floor action in both chambers.
The marriage equality movement continues to grow on the right…
Posted in Republicans, Supporters, USA | No Responses »
Tags: American Unity PAC, conservative, Gay Marriage, marriage equality, PAC, same sex marriage, usa
Senate Democrats are considering offering an amendment to include gay and lesbian binational couples to the immigration reform bill on the floor instead of in committee. The Washington Blade explains:
