Obama mentions gay moms in Mother's Day resolution

This would be a very welcome thing had he actually followed through on his big promises. Without ENDA, DOMA or DADT, this growing list of very small nods start to annoy.

Here's the gay part:

Nurturing families come in many forms, and children may be raised by two parents, a single mother, two mothers, a step-mom, a grandmother, or a guardian. Mother's Day gives us an opportunity to celebrate these extraordinary caretakers, mentors, and providers who have made us who we are.

UPDATE: Seems I wasn't alone.

Statement by Jennifer Chrisler, executive director of Family Equality Council, responding to inclusion of "two mothers" in Mother's Day Proclamation

"We welcome the President's words today but they represent the bow on the gift of equality we don't yet have. The one million LGBT families raising two million kids are really looking for action. One of our priorities is to open the doors for qualified LGBT people to adopt the 120,000 kids in foster care. There are at least four times as many LGBT people wanting to adopt than there are kids waiting to be adopted, according to the Williams Institute. The question is: Do we give these kids parents, or not? Thirty years of research and all major child welfare organizations agree: gay parents are good parents."

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Lithuanian court lets Gay Pride go ahead

The lower court banned it for "fear of violence." The appeals court understood that you don't censor good people because bad people may not like it. A former Soviet satellite should understand such things instinctively. As for what Catholics think about the parade, perhaps they should spend more time worrying about child rape. Read More...

DOJ: It's too hard to keep track of all the state laws on same-sex marriage

More coverage of yesterday's DOMA hearing in the courtroom of Federal District Court Judge Joseph L. Tauro. I was struck by this passage about DOJ's argument in the New York Times:

Scott Simpson, arguing for the government on Thursday, opened by acknowledging the administration’s opposition to the act, but saying he was still obliged to defend its constitutionality.

“This presidential administration disagrees with DOMA as a matter of policy,” Mr. Simpson said. “But that does not affect its constitutionality.”

The act was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1996.

Mr. Simpson, who asked the judge to dismiss the case, said Congress was initially motivated to pass the act because one state, Hawaii, was starting to consider whether to legalize same-sex marriage. And now that five states and the District of Columbia have legalized it, he said, the act spares the government the trouble of keeping track of different laws in different states.

To that argument, Ms. Bonauto told the court, “We’re not talking about mom-and-pop operations here; we’re talking about the federal government.”

That is such a weak argument. But, remember, the DOJ wants the Court to use the lowest level of judicial scrutiny in this case, which is whether DOMA is "rationally related to legitimate governmental interests." In the DOJ brief supporting its motion to dismiss this case, the government stated "a legislative policy must be upheld so long as there is any reasonably conceivable set of facts that could provide a rational basis for it, including ones that Congress itself did not advance or consider. DOMA satisfies this standard." Under that definition, having trouble keeping track of state laws would constitute a rational basis. Read More...

A letter about DADT to Obama from Harry Truman's grandson

There's a special historical significance to SLDN's latest letter in the series, "Stories from the Frontlines: Letters to President Barack Obama." Today's letter is from the grandson of President Harry S. Truman. Tomorrow is Truman's birthday. Truman desegregated the military in 1948 despite overwhelming public opposition to civil rights. But, it was the right thing to do. Today, there's overwhelming support for repealing DADT. It's the right thing to do. The question is whether the President will actually do it:

Here's the letter from Clifton Truman Daniel:

May 7, 2010

President Barack H. Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

Tomorrow, my family and I will mark the 126th anniversary of my grandfather President Harry Truman’s birthday. There are many reasons we celebrate his life and contributions to our nation, but in particular we are proud of his decision to desegregate the U.S. Armed Forces in July 1948, which paved the way for future civil rights advancements.

It was not easy. He faced fierce opposition from inside and outside the military. Many, including Army Chief of Staff Gen. Omar Bradley, argued that mixing black and white soldiers would destroy the Army.

My grandfather, however, was appalled that African-American service members had been beaten and lynched upon their return home from fighting in World War II. They had risked their lives to defend our nation, but were denied the full rights and responsibilities of American citizenship. Implementation of his order to desegregate wasn’t easy, but it made our military stronger and our nation a brighter beacon of democracy.

There are strong parallels between the desegregation of the military and the debate over “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the law that mandates the firing of a service member based solely on his or her sexual orientation. Opponents argue that allowing openly gay and lesbian service members to serve alongside their heterosexual comrades will endanger discipline and morale.

While I have no idea where my grandfather would stand on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” I do know that he admired service and sacrifice. An estimated 66,000 gay and lesbian Marines, Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Coastguardsmen are willingly risking their lives to defend our nation, despite being treated as second class citizens.

I would hope that my grandfather would want his openly gay great-granddaughter and others like her to have the opportunity to serve the country they love with dignity and integrity.

Mr. President, as you have said many times, including in your State of the Union Address earlier this year, ending “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” is the right thing to do. This year is the right time to do it.

I commend you for your commitment and hope the example of my grandfather, Harry Truman, will help you lead with the same courage and conviction to ensure the "equality of treatment and opportunity for all who serve our nation’s defense.”

Respectfully,
Clifton Truman Daniel

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Must read: Joe.My.God's exclusive interview with the Rekers' Rentboy

Early this morning, Joe Jervis interviewed Jo-Vanni Roman, the escort from Rentboys.com who traveled to Europe with George Rekers, the raging homophobe who helped found the Family Research Council. Of Rekers, Roman said, "He was definitely totally gay for me."

Here are a couple excerpts, but the interview is worth a read:

-His first contact with Dr. George Rekers was via email through Rentboy.com. They met in person one time before the trip to Europe, but "nothing happened."

-Jo-Vanni was excited to take his first trip out of the country and use his passport for the first time. He describes Rekers as a pleasant, amiable travel companion. Before leaving Miami, Rekers told Jo-Vanni that he was a child psychologist, but gave no hint of his also being a Baptist minister, much less a nationally infamous anti-gay activist.

Seems like this scandal is going to get a lot more attention. Anderson Cooper is on the story, too:

I was about to wrap things up when I almost idly asked, "So what have you got planned for tomorrow, more laying low, so to speak?" He said, "Well, I do have to get up early for an interview. You know that guy, the gay reporter on TV?"

That gay reporter is Anderson Cooper, whose office has been calling Jo-Vanni. So this morning CNN's Randi Kaye will meet Jo-Vanni at a Fort Lauderdale hotel for an on-camera (but probably silhouetted) interview. And there Jo-Vanni says he will hand over the confidentiality agreement signed by himself and Dr. George Rekers. "You know, I'd love to see that contract if you wouldn't mind faxing or emailing a photo of it to me," I said innocently. Jo-Vanni laughed and declined. Like I said, naive perhaps, but not dumb.

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