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NC: White House Issues Statement Denouncing Marriage Equality Ban

Wednesday, September 14th, 2011

North Carolina Gay Marriage BanWhite House spokesman Shin Inouye has issued the following response to North Carolina’s proposed anti-gay marriage amendment.

“The President has long believed that gay and lesbian couples deserve the same rights and legal protections as straight couples,” Inouye said.

“That’s why he has called for repeal of the so-called ‘Defense of Marriage Act’ and determined that his Administration would no longer defend the constitutionality of DOMA in the courts. He has also said that the states should determine for themselves how best to uphold the rights of their own citizens.”

Full Story from Joe.My.God

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White House Statement on Marriage Equality Survey Response “Bizarre”

Saturday, June 18th, 2011

The Washington Blade has a new White House statement on White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer’s statement earlier today that Barack Obama never filled out the 1996 questionnaires in which he stated his support for marriage equality:

“Dan was not familiar with the history of the questionnaire that was brought up today, but the president’s views are clear,” Inouye said. “He has long supported equal rights and benefits for gay and lesbian couples and since taking office he has signed into law the repeal of ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,’ signed into law the hate crimes bill, made the decision not to defend Section 3 of DOMA and expanded federal benefits for same sex partners of federal employees.”

Inouye didn’t respond to a further question from the Washington Blade to verify whether the White House believes the president in fact filled out the questionnaire in 1996.

What does that mean?

Full Story from AmericaBlog

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MN: White House Issues Lukewarm Statement About Gay Marriage Ban

Monday, May 23rd, 2011

The White House has issued a statement to the Washington Blade in response to questioning regarding the anti-gay marriage amendment by the Minnesota legislature over the weekend.

“The President has long opposed divisive and discriminatory efforts to deny rights and benefits to same sex couples or to take such rights away. While he believes this is an issue best addressed by the states, he also believes that committed gay couples should have the same rights and responsibilities afforded to any married couple in this country.”

Full Story from Towleroad.com

Click here for gay marriage resources in Minnesota.

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DC: White House Pastry Chef Marries Partner

Monday, May 2nd, 2011

White House executive pastry chef Bill Yosses, who was first hired for the job by Laura Bush in 2007 and whose confectionary duties have been somewhat curtailed in the current administration, married his partner in Washington, D.C., last week.

Yosses, 57, married Charlie Fabella Jr. at the Moultrie Courthouse Tuesday, with the announcement gracing the New York Times Sunday Weddings/Celebrations section.

Full Story from The Advocate

Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington, DC.

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White House Press Secretary: No Promises to Gay Community in 2012 Election

Monday, April 25th, 2011

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Monday he doesn’t expect President Obama to issue a list of promises to the LGBT community as part of his re-election campaign as he did during the 2008 election season.

During a news conference, Carney made the remarks in response to a question from the Washington Blade on whether Obama would publish a list of objectives he wanted to achieve for the LGBT community during the second term of his administration.

“Well, I don’t anticipate reissuing a list,” Carney said. “I think his position on a number of issues has been clear and his accomplishments on a number of issues have been clear. So as is true with a number of the goals he set forward during his campaign and in the first two-plus years of his administration, he remains [committed to] those that are unfinished.”

Full Story from the Washington Blade

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White House Issues New Rules for Hospitals on Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity

Thursday, November 18th, 2010

White House Issues New RulesToday the White House announced the publication of rules prohibiting Medicare and Medicaid hospitals from denying visitation privileges on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability.

The rules were created in response to a Presidential Memorandum issued earlier this year which instructed the Department of Health and Human Services to create new rules allowing patients the right to choose their own visitors during a hospital stay.

Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued that rule – a rule that will let patients decide whom they want by their bedside when they are sick – and that includes a visitor who is a same-sex domestic partner. The rule presents an important step forward in giving all Americans more control over their health care.

Full Story from Pam’s House Blend

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DC: White House “Opposes Any Effort to Strip DADT” from Defense Bill

Monday, November 8th, 2010

The Obama administration reiterated its support Monday for repealing the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” law and policy as Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) worked to strip language repealing the ban from the annual defense authorization bill.

“The White House opposes any effort to strip ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ from the National Defense Authorization Act,” White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer said.

The statement came as gay rights groups working to end the ban and liberal bloggers raised concerns that McCain would succeed in stripping repeal language from the massive defense policy bill. McCain, the ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, originally supported repeal but switched course this year and is exploring ways to introduce a revised version of the defense bill, a spokeswoman said.

Full Story from The Washington Post

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White House Calls Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Meeting With Gay Groups

Wednesday, October 27th, 2010

White HouseGay rights groups and senior Obama officials met Tuesday at the White House to discuss repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the 1993 law that bans gay and bisexual troops from serving openly.

The Washington Post is reporting that President Obama appeared briefly at the meeting. The president stopped by “to directly convey to the participants his personal commitment on the issue,” an unnamed official told the paper.

Groups invited included representatives of the Center for American Progress, the Human Rights Campaign, Servicemembers United, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, the Palm Center, a think tank at the University of California at Santa Barbara, the Stonewall Democrats and the Log Cabin Republicans. They met with several senior Obama officials, including White House Deputy Chief of Staff Jim Messina and senior adviser Valerie Jarrett.

Full Story from On Top Magazine

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DC: White House Planning Meeting With GLBT Community Leaders

Monday, June 21st, 2010

In the midst of the anger from LGBT community over the DOJ DOMA defense brief that equated same-sex marriage with pedophilia and incest and the inadequate response to that anger by the Obama Administration and that Administrations total lack of substantive action on concrete LGBT issues … LGBT broadcaster Michelangelo Signorile and Blogger John Aravosis are reporting that it sounds as if gay leaders have been invited to a party at the White House thrown just for them at the end of this month and are warning that leadership it would be unwise for them to attend.

Aravosis, who has been particularly vocal in his criticism of the Justice Department brief and the Obama Administrations lack of action on LGBT civil right issues, said yesterday…

It’s clear that the purpose is two-fold. First, the White House is trying, again, to surround the president with A-list gays in order to show how “gay friendly” he is – he’s even willing to give a speech in a room full of them for a full 8 minutes! And second, the White House hopes that a little champagne and fancy food will convince the A-listers to throw the rest of you overboard. Because, after all, what’s two gay service members discharged a day and an ongoing effort to legally label you as akin to pedophilia and incest, when there’s champagne to be served.

Full Story from Lez Get Real

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US: Deal on DADT Repeal Would Pass Now, Take Effect Over Several Years

Tuesday, May 25th, 2010

Congressional Democrats reached an agreement Monday with the White House and possibly the Pentagon on a key legislative step toward repealing the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that bars openly gay soldiers from the military.

In a letter to President Obama obtained by CNN, three congressional sponsors of legislation to repeal the policy outlined the proposed agreement that would set contingencies based on completion of a military review of the matter already under way and subsequent final approval from the president and military leaders.

Specifically, the proposed agreement calls for repeal to become final only after completion of the military review expected by the end of 2010, followed by a review certification from Obama, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen.

Full Story from CNN

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