2012` Q1 FReepathon. Target: $94,000 Receipts & Pledges to-date: $81,421
86%  
Woo hoo!! Less than $13k to go!! Thank you all very much!!

Keyword: doma

Brevity: Headers | « Text »
  • Oliver North: Freedom From Religion (Very good piece)

    02/09/2012 12:59:37 PM PST · by jazusamo · 23 replies
    Creators Syndicate ^ | February 10, 2012 | Oliver North
    WASHINGTON — "We don't need you, so shut up!" That's the message the Obama administration has sent loud and clear to America's Roman Catholics. And it's a message now being sent to U.S. military chaplains — to the detriment of our armed forces. During World War II, the War Department and the Department of the Navy urged — the operative word is "urged," not "ordered," mind you — U.S. military chaplains to encourage soldiers, sailors, airmen, guardsmen and Marines that God was on our side in the global battle against fascists, Nazis and the godless heathens running rampant across...
  • Rick Santorum Defends Anti Gay Marriage Stance: Marriage Is the Glue That Holds the Family Together

    01/02/2012 9:56:53 PM PST · by Lazlo in PA · 58 replies
    FOX News ^ | 01-02-12 | Studio B
    In an interview on Studio B Monday, Shepard Smith challenged Rick Santorum on his position on gay marriage. Santorum said that whether homosexuals should be allowed to marry is really a question of values, saying, “The question is whether we should change the laws of this country to reflect a different value structure. What we’re talking about here are different values. We have to Judeo-Christian values that are based on Biblical truth and truth that can be acclaimed and resolved through reason. And, those truths don’t change just because people’s attitudes may change.” He went onto say, “People are allowed...
  • Newt takes no-adultery pledge

    12/12/2011 11:33:17 AM PST · by Sub-Driver · 196 replies
    Newt takes no-adultery pledge By ALEXANDER BURNS | 12/12/11 1:09 PM EST When the Iowa social conservative group The Family Leader unveiled a sweeping pledge on marriage and abortion over the summer, Newt Gingrich was one of the candidates who passed on signing it. Now, Gingrich has answered the pledge with a lengthy written response, vowing to support a federal marriage amendment, reinstate the Mexico City policy -- and, per the stipulations of The Family Leader pledge, to be faithful to his wife: I also pledge to uphold the institution of marriage through personal fidelity to my spouse and respect...
  • Senate Approves Bill that Legalizes Sodomy and Bestiality in U.S. Military

    12/02/2011 1:53:39 PM PST · by IbJensen · 73 replies
    CNS News ^ | 1 December 2011 | Pete Winn
    CNSNews.com) – (Updated) The Senate on Thursday evening voted 93-7 to approve a defense authorization bill that includes a provision which not only repeals the military law on sodomy, it also repeals the military ban on sex with animals--or bestiality. On Nov. 15, the Senate Armed Services Committee had unanimously approved S. 1867, the National Defense Authorization Act, which includes a provision to repeal Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). Article 125 of the UCMJ makes it illegal to engage in both sodomy with humans and sex with animals. It states: "(a) Any person subject to...
  • ‘We were deceived’ on New York gay ‘marriage’ vote: Archbishop Dolan

    11/26/2011 1:15:00 PM PST · by NYer · 45 replies
    Life Site News ^ | November 25, 2011 | JOHN JALSEVAC
    NEW YORK, NY, November 25, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In the aftermath of the legalization of gay “marriage” in New York state, some commentators had wondered why, despite their leadership role in the fight against the law, the state’s Catholic bishops’ efforts had ultimately seemed so strangely half-hearted, given the high stakes. One of these was gay activist Terence Weldon. Writing after the vote at the blog “Queering the Church,” he said: “the really interesting thing about the Catholic bishops and NY gay marriage is not how vigorously they fought against it (as the headlines would have it), but how lukewarm...
  • Santorum says Romney to the left of Obama on same-sex marriage

    11/17/2011 11:11:19 AM PST · by Antoninus · 42 replies
    On Top Magazine ^ | November 15, 2011 | Carlos Santoscoy
    Rick Santorum on Monday accused GOP presidential rival Mitt Romney of being more liberal on gay marriage than President Barack Obama. Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania, made his remarks during an interview on Laura Ingraham's radio show. When Ingraham asked Romney's stance on a proposed bill that would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), Santorum answered: “I would argue that Mitt Romney, as governor of Massachusetts, was to the left of Barack Obama on the issue of gay marriage.” DOMA is the 1996 law that bars federal agencies and the military from recognizing the legal marriages of gay...
  • Republicans greased the way for same-sex marriage bill

    11/17/2011 5:26:50 AM PST · by EternalVigilance · 63 replies
    America's Party News ^ | Nov. 17, 2011 | Chris Carmouche
    GRASSTOPSUSA.COM - GIVE YOUR VALUES A VOICE In an email today, Chris Carmouche of GrassTopsUSA.com reports that the same sex marriage bill could have died in Senate Judiciary Committee, if not for the complicity of every Republican member. The Republicans on that committee are: Chuck Grassley (Iowa) - Ranking Member Orrin Hatch (Utah) Jon Kyl (Arizona) Jeff Sessions (Alabama) Lindsey Graham (South Carolina) John Cornyn (Texas) Michael Lee (Utah) Tom Coburn (Oklahoma) Here's the bulk of the email: GOP Senators Who Voted For Gay Marriage Before They Voted Against It So-Called "Homosexual Marriage" May Now Become The Law Of The...
  • Real homophobes don't Google [barf alert & FR referenced]

    11/14/2011 10:23:46 AM PST · by smokingfrog · 44 replies
    sfgate.com ^ | 9 Nov 2011 | Mark Morford
    Woe to you, oh modern card-carrying homophobe. For it can't be easy to be you right now, what with all the terrifying changes taking place, all the dramatic sexual upheavals and flagrant displays of "unnatural" love being hurled like exotic sushi in your plain hamburger face these days. Oh, you poor dear. I see you there, glumly sipping your Starbucks gingerbread latte while Googling Swedish fetish porn in between checking the latest news on NASCAR.com in your lightly stained Dockers and beat-up Nikes, Cartoon Network blaring in the background, tattered copy of Shooters Monthly on the bedside. I see you...
  • Starbucks, Levi urge gay 'marriage' recognition

    11/13/2011 7:17:25 PM PST · by Graybeard58 · 17 replies
    Baptist Press ^ | Nov 11, 2011 | Michael Foust
    BOSTON (BP) -- Some of the nation's top companies such as Google, CBS, Starbucks and Nike have joined forces in a legal brief asking a federal court to force the federal government to recognize gay "marriage." The friend-of-the-court brief asks the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold a 2010 lower court ruling that struck down part of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act. In that ruling, Judge Joseph L. Tauro said the federal government must recognize gay "marriages" from such states as Massachusetts, Vermont and the other four states where it's legal. In essence, the brief argues, the...
  • Senate committee approves bill to repeal Defense of Marriage Act

    11/10/2011 2:34:39 PM PST · by NYer · 34 replies
    Life Site News ^ | November 10, 2011 | MATT ANDERSON
    WASHINGTON D.C., November 10, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – In a narrow vote Thursday morning, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill that would grant federal recognition to homosexual “marriages.” The bill, titled the “Respect for Marriage Act,” passed the Democrat controlled committee by a 10-8 vote, with the members of the committee voting along party lines. The “Respect for Marriage Act” was introduced in the Senate in March by Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA) with the goal of repealing the “Defense of Marriage Act” (DOMA). DOMA asserts that states where homosexual “marriages” are not currently recognized are not required to recognize same-sex...
  • Nike, Microsoft, Google support striking down Defense of Marriage Act

    11/08/2011 8:39:09 AM PST · by Constitutionalist Conservative · 17 replies
    LifeSiteNews ^ | November 7, 2011 | Christine Dhanagom
    BOSTON, November 7, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A lawsuit that could nullify the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) has received the support of major U.S. corporations, who filed a brief opposing the law in federal court this week. A friend-of-the-court brief filed last Thursday in the case of Commonwealth of Massachusetts vs. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services argues that DOMA, which protects marriage as between a man and a woman in federal law, imposes crippling burdens on employers. Seventy employers are represented in the brief, including Microsoft, Starbucks, Google, NIKE, Levi Strauss and Co., CBS, Aetna, Blue Cross...
  • Microsoft, Starbucks among 70 major organizations to join suit AGAINST DOMA (shopping season alert!)

    11/06/2011 2:21:00 PM PST · by NYer · 60 replies
    Seattle Times ^ | November 4, 2011 | Janet I. Tu
    Microsoft and Starbucks are among 70 corporations, financial institutions, medical centers, and other major organizations that have signed on to a friend-of-the-court brief in support of a challenge to the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).The organizations are, or represent, major employers who argue that DOMA imposes significant administrative costs, and that it harms their ability to attract and retain talent."Microsoft has joined dozens of corporations, organizations and governments in support of a challenge on constitutionality grounds to the federal Defense of Marriage Act, known as DOMA," the company said in a statement. The amicus brief "points out the significant...
  • Democrats Against Marriage

    11/04/2011 11:29:07 AM PDT · by sr4402 · 2 replies
    Roll Call ^ | Nov. 3, 2011, 3:23 p.m. | Jessica Brady
    House Democrats File Brief Against DOMA The amicus brief filed by 133 Democrats, including the party’s top leaders, maintains that Congress hastily passed legislation during President Bill Clinton’s presidency to limit who can marry and asserts that the law is unconstitutional. The brief was filed in a consolidated court case being considered in the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, although a release said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) and other top Democratic leaders who oppose the law will file similar briefs in other pending court cases.
  • True ZOT, For All Americans

    11/04/2011 10:55:20 AM PDT · by merryandrew · 68 replies
    New York Times ^ | 11-3-11 | Andrew Rosenthal
    It has been 47 years since the passage of the Civil Rights Act, and 46 years since the passage of the Voting Rights Act. And yet the political leaders of this nation of liberty cannot seem to muster the courage and principle to sweep away one remaining example of institutionalized, government-sanctioned discrimination: The 1996 law that denies the right of marriage to same-sex couples. The law, the Defense of Marriage Act, was passed in the heat of election-year fear and bigotry against men who want to marry other men, and women who want to marry other women. It was a...
  • House Democrats File Brief Against DOMA

    11/03/2011 9:56:41 PM PDT · by neverdem · 13 replies
    Roll Call ^ | Nov. 3, 2011 | Jessica Brady
    House Democrats today filed a brief in support of a legal challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act, the 1996 law that defines marriage as between one man and one woman. The amicus brief filed by 133 Democrats, including the party’s top leaders, maintains that Congress hastily passed legislation during President Bill Clinton’s presidency to limit who can marry and asserts that the law is unconstitutional. The brief was filed in a consolidated court case being considered in the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, although a release said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) and other top Democratic leaders...
  • 132 House Dems oppose DOMA

    11/03/2011 11:44:36 AM PDT · by Pyro7480 · 12 replies
    Politico ^ | 11/03/2011 | Mackenzie Weinger
    Over 100 House members filed an amicus brief Thursday in support of a major challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act, saying the provision denying same-sex married couples federal rights is unconstitutional and undermines the interests of Congress. The brief states the 132 House Democrats think the DOMA section defining marriage as a legal union only between one man and one woman "lacks a rational relationship to any legitimate federal purpose and accordingly is unconstitutional." "Many Members believe that Section 3 of DOMA violates the Constitution and should be struck down," the brief states. Under the DOMA provision in question,...
  • Experts predict erosion of society, religious liberty if DOMA is repealed

    11/01/2011 2:04:20 PM PDT · by NYer · 5 replies
    cna ^ | October 31, 2011 | Michelle Bauman
    Washington D.C., Oct 31, 2011 / 03:01 pm (CNA).- Marriage advocates are warning that a repeal of the U.S. Defense of Marriage Act could have disastrous consequences for the nation, including the further erosion of religious liberty and a continued effort to legalize multiple-partner relationships.“Marriage is critically important because the marriage-based family is the original and best Department of Health, Education and Welfare,” said Robert P. George, law professor at Princeton University.George told CNA that a healthy marriage culture is “crucial to the overall success of any society.”In an Oct. 28 interview, George responded to reports that the Senate Judiciary...
  • Gay and lesbian service members sue government (never saw that one coming /sarc)

    10/27/2011 8:38:55 AM PDT · by markomalley · 28 replies
    A group of married gay current and former military personnel sued the federal government on Thursday, seeking equal recognition, benefits and the same support as married heterosexual couples who serve in the military. The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Boston says the government's Defense of Marriage Act violates their constitutional rights and asks the military to recognize their legal marriages. "This case is about one thing, plain and simple," said Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, which filed the suit. "It's about justice for gay and lesbian service members and their families in our...
  • Senate Dems begin push to repeal federal marriage law

    10/25/2011 9:49:40 AM PDT · by jazusamo · 25 replies
    The Washington Times ^ | October 25, 2011 | Stephen Dinan
    Senate Democrats next week will begin a push to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, the 1996 law that defines marriage for federal purposes and, to date, has meant states don’t have to recognize gay marriages performed in other states. Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick J. Leahy, Vermont Democrat, said Tuesday his panel will take up the Respect for Marriage Act, sponsored by Sen. Dianne Feinstein and co-sponsored by 30 other senators, all members of the Democratic caucus. The issue is bound to face strong opposition from Republicans, who would likely have the votes to filibuster the legislation should it reach...
  • Advance of same-sex marriage deepens concern for religious liberty

    10/14/2011 8:10:15 AM PDT · by NYer · 7 replies
    cns ^ | October 13, 2011 | Dennis Sadowski
    WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The widening campaign by gay rights advocates to promote same-sex marriage as a civil rights issue is forcing Catholic and other religious institutions to confront charges of intolerance and discrimination. Also at risk, say church officials working on the legal front, is the way religious institutions and individuals opposed to same-sex marriage conduct business from hall rentals to receiving government contracts for social services. Recently, the Diocese of Peoria, Ill., withdrew from all state-funded social service contracts, citing increasing clashes between state law and church teaching on same-sex relationships. The Diocese of Rockford stopped offering state-funded adoptions...
  • Evangelical Chaplains Refuse to Marry Gay Couples on Military Bases

    10/06/2011 7:56:13 PM PDT · by SeekAndFind · 23 replies
    Christian Post ^ | 10/06/2011 | Paul Stanley
    An organization representing more than 2,000 of the nation’s 5,000 military chaplains announced Wednesday they would join forces with Catholic Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for Military Service, saying they will not perform same-sex ceremonies. The 2,000 members of the Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty, a group of evangelical clergy, are concerned about the Pentagon’s memorandum – issued 10 days after the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal took effect – that authorizes chaplains to officiate “any private ceremony.” A Sept. 20 order lifted the military’s long-standing DADT policy, allowing homosexuals to openly serve in the armed forces. While the...
  • A Catholic Response to Homosexuality

    10/06/2011 5:47:32 AM PDT · by IbJensen · 5 replies
    TFP ^ | 9/23/2011 | Michael Drake
    Interview with the Most Reverend John C. Nienstedt, Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, by Michael Drake Archbishop John Clayton Nienstedt was born in March 1947, in Detroit, Mich. Following his studies at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, and the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, he was ordained to the priesthood in July 1974, at Sacred Heart Church, Dearborn, Mich. In May 2008, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. Since June of this year, Archbishop Nienstedt has being urging support for an amendment to the constitution of Minnesota to protect marriage as the union...
  • Rep. Akin: DOD Instructing Military 'To Do Things Which Are in Fact Illegal to Do'

    10/04/2011 12:18:16 PM PDT · by IbJensen · 11 replies
    CNS News ^ | 9/30/2011 | Pete Winn
    (CNSNews.com) – Rep. Todd Akin (R-Mo.) said the Obama administration was "bordering on lawlessness" with Friday’s Pentagon announcement that military chaplains may officiate in same-sex wedding ceremonies of service members in states where gay marriage is legal. “One of the things that’s increasingly alarming to many Americans is the nature of various agencies of the federal government that either make up their own laws or try to create their own law when they do not have law-making authority,” Akin told CNSNews.com on Friday. “In this case, it appears that the Department of Defense under Obama – and probably at Obama’s...
  • US: military chaplains may perform same-sex unions

    09/30/2011 9:45:36 AM PDT · by ConjunctionJunction · 32 replies
    AP ^ | September 30, 2011
    WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Pentagon has decided that military chaplains may perform same-sex unions, whether on or off a military installation. The ruling announced Friday by the Pentagon's personnel chief follows the Sept. 20 repeal of a law that had prohibited gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military.
  • Same-sex “Marriage”: Accept it or Resign!

    09/27/2011 11:59:59 AM PDT · by IbJensen · 50 replies
    TFP ^ | 9/21/2011 | John Horvat II
    When the New York state legislature rammed through a law “legalizing” same-sex “marriage” this last summer, countless New Yorkers disagreed with the decision. Among them were Christian town clerks who could not in good conscience sign marriage licenses for a union they consider sinful. Clauses were written in the law that supposedly protect clergy from being forced to act against their faith. However, such clauses do not apply to town clerks or any other government official. Clerks are told point blank, either accept the law, or resign. Town clerk Rose Marie Belforti of Ledyard, New York found out the hard...
  • This is how protected beliefs become prosecuted "bigotry"

    09/25/2011 3:59:09 PM PDT · by NYer · 8 replies
    Insight Scoop ^ | September 25, 2011 | Carl Olson
    Sister Mary Ann Walsh, director of media relations for the USCCB, wonders if "late night comics who mock the church ... have set the tone of the government's current salvos against religious freedom", and then warns:In the effort to redefine marriage, we see the government threatening religious discrimination in the name of--you guessed it--preventing discrimination. The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), passed by Congress and signed by President Clinton, declares that marriage is between one man and one woman. But the Department of Justice, which is charged with defending Acts of Congress like DOMA against constitutional challenge, declared in March...
  • Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen Becomes First Republican To Cosponsor DOMA Repeal Bill

    09/24/2011 6:07:07 PM PDT · by MrZippy2k · 41 replies
    WASHINGTON -- Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) has signed on as the first Republican co-sponsor of the bill to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act. “I voted against the constitutional amendment defining marriage so I’m pleased to co-sponsor the repeal of DOMA and work with my colleagues on marriage equality,” said Ros-Lehtinen in a statement. The DOMA-repeal bill, known as the Respect for Marriage Act, now has 125 cosponsors. Under DOMA, which was signed into law in 1996, states are allowed to not recognize valid same-sex unions performed in other states. Same-sex couples are also denied federal benefits afforded to opposite-sex...
  • Catholic bishops push for ‘reset’ on marriage (Focus on threat in letter to Obama)

    09/23/2011 5:42:37 AM PDT · by Cronos · 24 replies
    Washington Times ^ | 22 Sep 2011 | Cheryl Wetztein
    The nation’s Catholic bishops have urged President Obama to “push the reset button” on his administration’s treatment of a federal marriage law, or face an enormous national conflict between church and state“I write with a growing sense of urgency about recent actions taken by your Administration that both escalate the threat to marriage and imperil the religious freedom of those who promote and defend marriage,” New York Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan wrote to Mr. Obama on Sept. 20...Another “grave” concern is that people of faith who support marriage and the rights of children to be raised by a mother and...
  • Abp. Dolan to Obama: Cease Attacks on Marriage or Risk “National Conflict…of Enormous Proportions”

    09/22/2011 11:08:17 AM PDT · by NYer · 32 replies
    Catholic Vote ^ | September 22, 2011 | Thomas Peters
    Wow. This definitely represents a significant escalation of tone and includes the threat of consequences if the Obama administration does not, as this letter from Archbishop Timothy Dolan to the President calls for, “push the reset button” on their multipronged efforts to undermine marriage and treat Catholics who believe in marriage as bigots.Abp. Dolan is careful to point out that his opinion represents the view of the bishops conference: The Justice Department‟s move [to undermine DOMA], in addition to other troubling federal decisions occurring recently, prompts me yet again to register my grave concerns. The content of this letter reflects...
  • Abp. Dolan's no-nonsense letter to Obama on DOMA

    09/22/2011 4:01:47 AM PDT · by fabrizio · 13 replies
    Dear Mr. President: I write with a growing sense of urgency about recent actions taken by your Administration that both escalate the threat to marriage and imperil the religious freedom of those who promote and defend marriage. This past spring the Justice Department announced that it would no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in court, a decision strongly opposed by the Catholic Bishops of the United States and many others. Now the Justice Department has shifted from not defending DOMA-which is problem enough, given the duty of the executive branch to enforce even laws it disfavors-to actively...
  • Lawsuit seeks information on Obama administration’s anti-DOMA action

    09/01/2011 5:05:43 AM PDT · by markomalley · 2 replies
    EWTN News ^ | Sep 1, 2011
    A new lawsuit filed against the Department of Justice charges that it is withholding e-mails about the Obama administration’s decision not to defend the Defense of Marriage Act. “We have serious concerns that the Justice Department wants to hide evidence that it was doing the bidding of campaign donors and homosexual activists from whom Obama will need assistance for his reelection,” said Family Research Council president Tony Perkins. Under the Freedom of Information Act, the Family Research Council had requested the relevant documents from the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division to determine the basis for the decision and to...
  • The Wedding Bell Blues: What Better Way to Keep a Story Quiet than to Write a Column About It

    09/01/2011 7:47:57 AM PDT · by PBRCat · 6 replies
    The Chicago Daily Observer ^ | September 1, 2011 | Daniel J. Kelley
    According to a gushing Carol Marin column, State Representative Deborah Mell (D-40th) “quietly made Illinois history last week” by marrying a woman in Iowa. Judging by Marin’s tone, this must have been the equivalent of Abraham Lincoln issuing the Emancipation Proclamation. Quietly making history? Really? If a same sex marriage conducted in Davenport is splashed across the front page of a daily Chicago metropolitan newspaper, does it make a sound?
  • Family Research Council Sues Obama Justice Department for Documents Regarding Decision Not...

    08/31/2011 9:55:30 AM PDT · by jazusamo · 2 replies
    Judicial Watch ^ | August 31, 2011
    Complete title: Family Research Council Sues Obama Justice Department for Documents Regarding Decision Not to Defend Defense of Marriage ActJudicial Watch Represents Family Research Council in Freedom of Information Act Lawsuit over Justice Department’s Undermining of DOMA Washington, DC -- August 31, 2011Judicial Watch announced today that it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit on August 29, 2011, against the Obama Department of Justice (DOJ) on behalf of the Family Research Council (FRC) for records related to the DOJ’s decision not to defend the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in any pending or future litigation...
  • Obama administration cracks open door to gay immigrant couples, DREAMers

    08/18/2011 3:25:39 PM PDT · by SmithL · 6 replies
    San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 8/18/11 | Carolyn Lochhead, Chronicle Washington Bureau
    Gay and lesbian married bi-national couples like San Francisco's Bradford Wells and Anthony John Makk may get some relief from the threat of deportation under the Defense of Marriage Act, thanks to action by the Obama administration today. In a letter to Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said a new working group will be established to identify low-priority cases for immigrant deportation. The administration will exercise prosecutorial discretion, widely practiced by all law enforcement officers, to identify which low-priority deportation cases to ignore. The policy is also posted on the White House website. Napolitano...
  • S.F. gay "married" couple loses immigration battle

    08/09/2011 8:53:15 PM PDT · by massmike · 29 replies
    sfgate.com ^ | 08/09/2011 | Carolyn Lochhead
    Citing the Defense of Marriage Act, the Obama administration denied immigration benefits to a married gay couple from San Francisco and ordered the expulsion of a man who is the primary caregiver to his AIDS-afflicted spouse. Bradford Wells, a U.S. citizen, and Anthony John Makk, a citizen of Australia, were married seven years ago in Massachusetts. They have lived together 19 years, mostly in an apartment in the Castro district. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services denied Makk's application to be considered for permanent residency as a spouse of an American citizen, citing the 1996 law that denies all federal...
  • Military Chaplains Mull End of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

    07/29/2011 10:16:11 AM PDT · by jazusamo · 25 replies
    Fox News ^ | July 29, 2011 | Lauren Green
    The military's “Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy,” will be no more as of Sept. 20, when homosexual men and women will be allowed to serve openly in all branches of the U.S. armed forces. But a number of military chaplains fear an unofficial version of the policy will take its place, one that muzzles and marginalizes chaplains who hold strict biblical beliefs about homosexuality. "We've already seen that a chaplain had an assignment pulled because he was critical of the repeal of DADT," says retired Col. Ron Crews, a former U.S. Army chaplain. Crews, along with several other chaplain endorsers...
  • Why Didn't Obama Support A Measure Repealing DOMA When He Had A Filibuster-Proof Senate?

    07/21/2011 3:08:38 PM PDT · by Laissez-faire capitalist · 13 replies
    7/21/2011 | Laissez-Faire Capitalist
    Obama supports the Respect For Marriage Act, introduced by Feinstein and Nadler, both Democrats. Why didn't Obama come out in support of the repealing of DOMA, when he had strong control of the House and a filibuster-proof Senate? Dems have said that the issue of same-sex marriage is a divisive wedge/social issue that needs to be left alone. Why aren't they saying this now? If, for the sake of argument, Obama couldn't pass it then due to some Dem defections, then what chance of passing would this measure have now? If Obama supports this measure, then why did the DOJ...
  • Obama to Back Repeal of Law Restricting Marriage

    07/19/2011 10:53:47 PM PDT · by Cronos · 34 replies
    The New York Times ^ | 19 July 2011 | Helene Cooper
    President Obama will endorse a bill to repeal the law that limits the legal definition of marriage to a union between a man and a woman, the White House said Tuesday, taking another step in support of gay rights. Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, said Mr. Obama was taking the additional step away from the Defense of Marriage Act — which the administration said earlier this year it would no longer defend in court — in order to “uphold the principle that the federal government should not deny gay and lesbian couples the same rights and legal protections...
  • Feinstein Pushes Bill to Repeal DOMA, Ensure Federal Benefits to ‘Married’ Gays

    07/19/2011 8:19:55 PM PDT · by jazusamo · 34 replies
    CNSNews ^ | July 19, 2011 | Penny Starr
    (CNSNews.com) – Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.) has introduced a bill to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act [2] (DOMA) and replace it with the Respect for Marriage Act [3], which would recognize “married” same-sex couples in the same way as married men and women and ensure those gay couples are eligible to receive federal benefits. Feinstein’s bill would not, however, require states without homosexual marriage laws to recognize those legally sanctioned in other states. “The bill [4]is simple,” Feinstein said at the National Press Club on Tuesday. “It would strike the Defense of Marriage Act from federal law and it...
  • Obama backs bill to repeal Defense of Marriage Act

    07/19/2011 12:50:59 PM PDT · by Clint N. Suhks · 37 replies
    WaPo ^ | 7/19/11 | David Nakamura
    The Obama administration announced Tuesday that it will support a congressional effort to repeal a federal law that defines marriage as a legal union between a man and woman. White House spokesman Jay Carney denounced the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), saying the administration will back a bill introduced this year by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) to remove the law from the books. Feinstein’s bill, called the Respect for Marriage Act, would “uphold the principle that the federal government should not deny gay and lesbian couples” the same rights as others, according to Carney. The Senate is scheduled to...
  • President Obama Supports Legislation to Repeal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)

    07/19/2011 1:08:18 PM PDT · by Pyro7480 · 123 replies
    ABC News ^ | 07/19/2011 | Jake Tapper
    Tomorrow the Senate will hold the first hearing on The Respect for Marriage Act, which repeals the Defense of Marriage Act, thus granting to all lawfully married couples—including same-sex couples—to receive federal marriage benefits and protections if they are joined by a valid marriage in a state where such marriages are legal. “The president has long called for a legislative repeal of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, which continues to have a real impact on the lives of real people --our families, friends and neighbors,” White House press secretary Jay Carney said at today’s press briefing. “He is proud...
  • KNIGHT: Obama’s assault on the rule of law

    07/10/2011 10:09:36 AM PDT · by illiac · 1 replies
    The Washington Times ^ | 7/8/11 | Robert Knight
    When Timothy F. Geithner whipped out his pocket Constitution in May to address the debt-ceiling issue, the rivers in Hades must have been packed with ice-skaters. Consult the Constitution? The Treasury secretary appeared to be out of order in an administration whose standard operating procedure is flouting the rule of law. Of course, even the devil can quote Scripture. On Wednesday, President Obama was asked at the Twitter news conference whether he could raise the debt ceiling by invoking the 14th Amendment’s Section 4, which says in part: “The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by...
  • Administration supports lesbian employee's case (Arguing to overturn DOMA)

    07/02/2011 4:34:34 PM PDT · by markomalley · 95 replies
    AP/Yahoo ^ | 7/2/11
    In a strongly worded legal brief, the Obama administration has said the federal act that defines marriage as being between a man and a woman was motivated by hostility toward gays and lesbians and is unconstitutional. The brief was filed Friday in federal court in San Francisco in support of a lesbian federal employee's lawsuit claiming the government wrongly denied health coverage to her same-sex spouse. The Justice Department says Karen Golinski's suit should not be dismissed because the law under which her spouse was denied benefits — the Defense of Marriage Act — violates the constitution's guarantee of equal...
  • Senator Says Defense of Marriage Act ‘On Wrong Side of History,’ Joins LGBT Video

    07/02/2011 8:55:19 AM PDT · by massmike · 32 replies
    cnsnews.com ^ | 07/02/2011 | Katie Bell
    Thirteen U.S. senators who oppose the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) participated in a video for the pro-homosexual “It Gets Better” project, in which they encourage lesbian and gay youth to persevere and be optimistic about the future. In discussing the release of the video on Wednesday, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said, “DOMA, folks, is on the wrong side of history.” The participation of the 13 senators, all Democrats, in the “It Gets Better” video project was spearheaded by Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), who won Joe Biden’s seat after the latter became vice president.
  • New York probably gets DOMA on the Supreme Court docket

    06/29/2011 5:29:41 PM PDT · by Starman417 · 3 replies
    Flopping Aces ^ | 06-29-11 | Vince
    The Constitution is singularly the greatest document that has ever been written and has resulted in more good for more people around the world than any other single document of man in history. It’s not however perfect. It has an amendment process that allows citizens to make bad choices – see the 16th and 17th Amendments, both enacted in the midst of a progressive frenzy in 1913 – but such changes require the active participation of a large segment of the population. There is however a move afoot to change the Constitution in a different way. Article Four of the...
  • Mass. Dems use New York gay marriage law to tweak Scott Brown

    06/27/2011 6:23:51 PM PDT · by massmike · 15 replies
    bostonherald.com ^ | 06/27/2011 | AP
    Massachusetts Democrats are using New York’s adoption of gay marriage to tweak Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown for his continued opposition to same-sex marriage. Massachusetts Democratic Party Chairman John Walsh said all the declared Democratic candidates challenging Brown in next year’s election support gay marriage. A Brown aide said Monday that the senator still opposes gay marriage and supports the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which prohibits federal recognition of gay marriages.
  • Gay marriage backers: NY vote has national impact

    06/26/2011 7:44:11 PM PDT · by Racehorse · 42 replies
    AP via San Antonio Express News ^ | 26 June 2011 | David Crary
    Many obstacles still lie ahead for supporters of same-sex marriage, and eventually they will need Congress or the Supreme Court to embrace their goal. For the moment, though, they are jubilantly channeling the lyrics of "New York, New York." "Now that we've made it here, we'll make it everywhere," said prominent activist Evan Wolfson, who took up the cause of marriage equality as a law student three decades ago. SNIP With the new law, which takes effect after 30 days, the number of Americans in same-sex marriage states more than doubles. New York's population of 19 million surpasses the combined...
  • President Obama Vows At Midtown LGBT Gala To ‘Keep On Fighting’ For Same-Sex Marriage

    06/23/2011 6:31:36 PM PDT · by Sub-Driver · 27 replies
    President Obama Vows At Midtown LGBT Gala To ‘Keep On Fighting’ For Same-Sex Marriage June 23, 2011 8:29 PM NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) — President Barack Obama urged his supporters to recapture their enthusiasm from his 2008 campaign even though he says he’s “old news.” Speaking to high-dollar donors Thursday night, Obama said he may not be the new, fresh candidate anymore, but his vision for the country is still the same as it was in 2008. Obama spoke at a fundraiser at the exclusive restaurant Daniel on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The dinner fundraiser — which reportedly cost over $35,000...
  • NY gay marriage gains support in GOP Senate

    06/14/2011 6:07:10 PM PDT · by Free ThinkerNY · 16 replies
    Associated Press ^ | June 14, 2011 | MICHAEL GORMLEY
    ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- After a second day of a lobbying blitz and propelled by Gov. Andrew Cuomo's personal buttonholing of GOP senators, a measure to legalize gay marriage in New York drew to within one vote of passing, with at least two more Republicans still undecided. On Tuesday, a second Republican senator said he would support Cuomo's same-sex marriage bill, less than two years after he was part of a GOP-led defeat of a similar bill that dealt a blow to the national effort to legalize gay marriage.
  • (Calif.)Bankruptcy Court declares Defense of Marriage Act invalid

    06/14/2011 3:39:40 PM PDT · by tcrlaf · 15 replies
    LA Times ^ | 6-14-11 | Carol J. Williams
    The largest bankruptcy court in the country has declared the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act a violation of the Constitution's equal protection guarantee. The decision signed by 20 judges of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California is the first bankruptcy court to address the constitutionality of the law passed by Congress 15 years ago which prohibits federal government recognition of same-sex marriage. The decision came in a case in which a legally married gay couple was seeking to jointly file for bankruptcy. The ruling by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thomas A. Donovan in Los Angeles adds weight...