A busy week, both in the U. S. and abroad: House Republicans in Alaska are backing an April advisory vote to ask voters if they would support a constitutional amendment to ban court-ordered benefits for the same-sex partners of public employees. The election would cost $1.2 million, nearly four times the annual cost of benefits […]
Some good, some bad, and some ugly this week: The federal First Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments on March 7 in Cook v. Gates (formerly Cook v. Rumsfeld [Ha! -Ed.]), a constitutional challenge to the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” ban on LGB service members. Senator and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton also
Lots of stories this week. In U. S. federal news: Colorado Republicans Sen. Wayne Allard and Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, who sponsored the failed Federal Marriage Amendment twice before, say they will not try a third time. Vice President Dick Cheney called CNN newscaster Wolf Blitzer “out of line” for asking him to comment on a
Deb Price of the Detroit News examines House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s child-laced photo-op, and calls on Pelosi to use her new clout to protect gay kids from harassment. The Arizona legislator who filed a bill calling for a new vote on a revised same-sex marriage amendment, has said he made a mistake and requested that
In 2008, Arizona voters could be deciding for the second time on a constitutional ban of same-sex marriage. Voters rejected a ban last November, the only defeat for such a measure in the country. The new ban would eliminate any mention of benefits for domestic partners or unmarried couples, in an attempt by conservatives to
Retired Chair of the U. S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General John Shalikashvili, who had supported the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, says “I now believe that if gay men and lesbians served openly in the United States military, they would not undermine the efficacy of the armed forces. Our military has been stretched
The week is chock full of news: Former U. S. President Gerald Ford died this week. Both Pam at Pandagon and Planet Out document Ford’s support for lesbian and gay rights, including marriage equality. As expected, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin vetoed a bill that would have prevented the state from giving benefits to the partners
No pre-Christmas slowdown in LGBT news: Alaska governor Sarah Palin will comply with a state Supreme Court order to offer health and retiree benefits to same-sex partners of state employees. At the same time, “she supports denying those benefits through a constitutional amendment, if that’s what the public wants,” and signed a bill calling for
Senator Sam Brownback (R-Kansas) blocked the nomination of President Bush’s nominee Janet Neff to the federal courts. Brownback, who chaired her hearing, said he would only permit a vote if Neff agreed not to hear cases involving same-sex marriage, claiming that her attendance at the commitment ceremony of a neighbor and friend of 26 years
The Maryland Supreme Court heard arguments from 19 gay and lesbian residents, urging them to strike down a law banning same-sex marriage. The New Jersey State Assembly’s judiciary committee approved a bill to create civil unions with the same rights as marriage, despite a push from LGBT-rights groups to call these unions “marriage.” The full
