SLOG: "Catholics are the New Mormons"

Dominic Holden wants to be unbaptize himself now that the Catholics are bragging about their anti-gay victory in Maine. Read More...

AP: "Gay leaders blame TV ads, Obama for loss in Maine" - White House refuses to comment

I couldn't find a single person, gay or straight, today who wasn't livid with the DNC and the White House for abandoning gay and lesbian Americans in yesterday's election. The gay blogs are aflame with anger. And at least one leader of a national group is willing to call out the White House for its less than fierce advocacy on behalf of our civil rights.

AP:

Stunned and angry, national gay rights leaders Wednesday blamed scare-mongering ads — and President Barack Obama's lack of engagement — for a bitter election setback in Maine that could alter the dynamics for both sides in the gay-marriage debate....

"President Obama missed an opportunity to state his position against these discriminatory attacks with the clarity and moral imperative that would have helped in this close fight," said Evan Wolfson of the national advocacy group Freedom to Marry. "The anti-gay forces are throwing millions of dollars into various unsubtle ads aimed at scaring people, so subtle statements from the White House are not enough."

The White House, asked about the criticism, had no immediate comment.

No immediate comment. Sorry to bother you with our humanity. Read More...

In happier news, there's reportedly a sex tape of the former Miss California turned evangelical bigot

God does have a wicked sense of humor some times. TMZ has the story (hat tip to Andy Towle).

The video the lawyer showed Carrie is extremely graphic and has never been released publicly. We know that, because TMZ obtained the video months ago but decided not to post it because it was so racy. Let's just say, Carrie has a promising solo career.

I can just imagine protesters showing up at her religious right anti-gay speaking engagements, holding signs with blown up stills from her movie debut. Hard to see how to she continues her gig with the bigots now.

Maybe Larry King can have her on again. Read More...

Looking more and more like Referendum 71 will be approved

Yesterday was a good day for progressives in Washington State (not that anyone in the traditional media has noticed.) Archerhouse has a post at DailyKos updating the status on Referendum 71:

Currently Referendum 71 stands at 51.10% to 48.90%. Unlike in Maine, an Approve vote is to KEEP the law, and a REJECT vote is to get rid of the law. It's kind of confusing, but that's how referenda work in our state.

One other caveat about our elections: Washington State is now all vote by mail, except for one county, Pierce. But unlike Oregon, we allow ballots to be postmarked up until the day of the election. What this means is that people can wait up until the last mail collection on Election Day to put their ballot in the mail (besides finding a drop box, which also works). So results tend to come in more slowly because some ballots are still going into the mail at the same time early ballots are being tabulated.

That said, Ref. 71 is safe. It is going to pass. King County only reported once last night, and King County is Ref. 71's stronghold. Nearly sixty six percent of King County voters are in support of Ref. 71. That's like a 2 to 1 ratio. But King isn't the only county where Ref. 71 is passing. It's also winning just to the north in Snohomish County. Without Snohomish County on their side, the religious right cannot defeat us. It isn't possible. King County can't be outvoted unless many other populous western counties go against it. And that is not happening.

By Approving Referendum 71 Washington becomes the first state in America to sanction civil rights for LGBT individuals in a statewide vote. This is a major breakthrough, friends. And it's all the sweeter because in Washington, successful referenda cannot be tampered with for two years without a supermajority vote.

Congrats to the team at Washington Families Standing Together and our friend, Josh Cohen, who was deeply involved in the Approve 71 campaign. Read More...

St. Petersburg elects first openly-gay council member

At least some good news. Read More...

The Catholic Bishop of Maine just asked my sister for $3,000

The Bishop of Maine, who just spent $550,000 on his campaign of hate and discrimination, is undertaking a $40,000,000 capital campaign. And, my sister, Sharon, who just spent the past few months working tirelessly on No on 1, just got a letter asking her to give the Diocese $3,000. Let's just say, the answer is NO.

The parish priest who wrote the letter wanted Sharon to know, "I want to highlight that this is simply not a collection of money to be used by the Diocese for whatever it wants." Yeah, the Bishop has all kinds of mystery sources for those special hate-filled projects.

From what I hear, Bishop Malone's role in the No on 1 campaign was designed to further his career. So, it wasn't just an anti-gay effort. It was also Malone's campaign to become a cardinal. There's nothing the Prada wearing Pope likes more than a gay-basher.

P.S.: Just to clarify, Sharon doesn't go to mass or attend church -- and hasn't for years. The Catholic Church is apparently so desperate for money (having spent so much on their anti-gay vendetta) that they're soliciting people who haven't stepped foot inside their building for years. Read More...

The Advocate on Maine loss

Check out the last line:

Following the loss of Proposition 8, many equality advocates soured on then-candidate Obama’s unwillingness to take a strong stand against stripping people of their right to marry the person of their choosing.

Tuesday, longtime LGBT activist David Mixner wrote a blistering blog post that impugned President Obama for once again failing to speak out decisively for equality.

“Tragically,” Mixner wrote, “if we lose closely, that defeat almost can be laid at the steps of the White House for their refusal to stand by our side in the battle for freedom.”

Bloggers Jon Aravosis and Andrew Sullivan also marveled at the lack of help offered by the Democratic National Committee and Obama's spinoff arm of the DNC, Organizing For America (OFA).

"It is staggering to me that the message discipline from the DNC is so tight that they even forbade OFA from telling Obama-supporters which way to vote on the referendum," wrote Sullivan.

"Tell us again why any gay voter should help the DNC ever again?" wondered Aravosis.

Their call to arms might foretell a rising anger within the LGBT community over the Obama Administration's seemingly tacit acceptance of a separate and unequal status for gay relationships.

Read More...

Mixner has had it with Democrats, the Congress, the White House, and our groups

David Mixner:

President Obama standing on the sidelines in Maine and Washington was appalling. The failure of our national organizations and leaders to demand his involvement was equally appalling. The outrageous act of the Democratic National Committee sending an email into Maine asking Maine Democrats to call into "NEW JERSEY" instead of to support the fight against bigotry was unbelievable. No one gets to sit on the sidelines in an epic battle against apartheid and no one gets a free pass. If you want our support, you have to earn it. We are way beyond where we will accept a little bit in 2009, some in 2010 and maybe more in the second term. Does anyone think after yesterday election results and the upcoming 2010 election, Obama has the ability to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and "DOMA" next year? Does anyone really believe we haven't already missed a historic opportunity in the first 10 months of this year? Only a courageous fighting President and Congress can now help turn us this around and that we have not seen so far. Enough.

Read More...

Second-ranking Democrat in the Senate Dick Durbin: We might not get to repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell

In an article in The Hill, which explains how some Democrats don't want to take up "controversial" issues, we learn that the number two Democrat in the Senate, Dick Durbin (D-IL), is now saying they may not take up the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell next year. Durbin, being from Illinois, has very close ties to the Obama administration, so when he speaks, it's not only as a Senate leader, but as an Obama surrogate:

Reid, meanwhile, has pushed for the repeal of the military’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, which prohibits gays from serving openly in the military.

Gay-rights activists have put strong pressure on Obama and Democratic leaders to repeal the ban sooner rather than later.

Reid sent a letter to Obama last month asking him to provide recommendations on gays serving in the military, noting that Congress is considering “future legislative action.”

Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he was not certain whether repealing “Don’t ask, don’t tell” would be on next year’s agenda.

That's not a good signal from Durbin.

What we're learning is that just because Democrats make campaign promises while asking the gay community for money, doesn't mean Democrats will actually follow through on those promises. We're "controversial." Read More...

White House tells Democratic congressman to "man up"

Sexist, homophobic or both?

And if you disagree, imagine the White House telling Barbara Boxer or Barney Frank to "man up." They wouldn't, because it's a slur dealing with gender and effeminateness. Read More...

No on 1's concession email: " We're in this for the long haul."

Below is the email sent from Jesse Connolly, the campaign manager for No on 1. He is an amazing man with an enormous commitment to social justice and equality. Yesterday, we lost in Maine. But, it's so not over:

Yesterday, hundreds of thousands of Maine voters stood for equality, but in the end, it wasn't enough.

I am proud of the thousands of Mainers who knocked on doors, made phone calls and talked to their family, friends and neighbors about the basic premise of treating all Maine families equally.

And I'm proud of this campaign because the stories we told and the images we shared were of real Mainers -- parents who stood up for their children, and couples who simply wanted to marry the person they love.

We're in this for the long haul. For next week, and next month, and next year-- until all Maine families are treated equally. Because in the end, this has always been about love and family and that will always be something worth fighting for.

Thank you. Thank you for everything you did. Thank you for digging deep and giving one more dollar to run our TV ads, for making those phone calls for one more hour. This campaign was, from the beginning, powered by people like you who rolled up their sleeves and did the hard work of change.

Stay the course.

I want to add my thanks to everyone in the AMERICAblog community who supported our work in Maine. You all were great...giving money...making calls. It was appreciated in Maine and by both John and me. Read More...

We lost in Maine

AP has called the race in Maine. No on 1 lost:

Maine voters have torpedoed a state law that would have allowed gay couples to marry. With 84 percent of the precincts reporting, gay-marriage foes had 53 percent of the vote Tuesday.

The outcome amounts to a heartbreaking defeat for the gay rights movement -- particularly since it occurred in New England, the corner of the country most supportive of gay marriage.

Needless to say, we're very, very disappointed. Hate won.

I'll have more to say after I get some sleep. Read More...