TODAY the Human Rights Campaign is deploying hundreds of volunteers to meet with their congressmembers in Washington, DC to tell them it’s time to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” pass ENDA and take action on a number of other priorities for the LGBT community. Says HRC:
No matter where you live, you can join in RIGHT NOW!
We’re holding a virtual lobby day to coincide with the meetings taking place on Capitol Hill. All it takes is a few minutes and you can play a critical role in ending the DADT law that forces brave men and women to lie while defending our country. Think of the power of having LGBT people and our allies meeting members of Congress while we fill their inboxes and phone lines with a simple message: “Repeal ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ NOW.”
Follow-up with a phone call. The Capitol switchboard is 202-224-3121. Tell them where you live, and they’ll connect you to any of your lawmakers’ offices. Tell your lawmakers that you’re calling to urge Congress to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” this year.
Use Twitter to spread the word. Our volunteer lobbyists will be tweeting from the Capitol using the #DADT, #ENDA, #DPBO, #HIV and other hashtags. Once you take action, tweet about the experience and join the conversation.
All this talk about repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” – and the spotlight on Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain’s very public and embarrassingly obvious flip-flop over gays and lesbians serving openly in the military made me think about McCain’s predecessor – the late Sen. Barry Goldwater, the political “father” of the conservative movement. Perhaps his most famous quote from the early 1990s is, “You don’t have to be straight to be in the military; you just have to be able to shoot straight.”
But few remember that Goldwater wrote an op-ed calling for the ban on gays serving openly in the military to be lifted immediately. Click inside to read more about Goldwater and his entire op-ed.
The LGBT blogospher exploded Wednesday morning with reaction to the historic Senate Armed Services hearing Tuesday during which Defense Sec. Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mullen announced their desire to repeal the discriminatory Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, pursuant to President Obama’s State of the Union address saying he wanted to repeal DADT this year.
Retired General Colin Powell, the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who supported congressional passage of DADT in 1993, also issued a statement Wednesday saying he supported the new approach.
The reaction to the repeal has been excitement that the end of DADT seems in sight mixed with cautious pushback over why the high commanders didn’t announce a suspension of enforcement while the policy is under review.
But for me – a military brat who’s been covering this issue since David Mixner first raised the prospect of lifting the ban on gays serving openly with presidential candidate Bill Clinton in 1991 – two developments I never thought I’d see also happened Wednesday: Mullen posted his opinion about DADT on his blog on the Joint Chiefs of Staff website (with a link to the full hearing transcript, video is coming) and the Pentagon featured a “straight” news report about DADT.
And here’s Rachel Maddow’s interview with Lt. Col. Fehrenbach:
At the historic August 2007 forum in which Democratic presidential candidates were questioned about their beliefs and policies on LGBT issues, singer Melissa Etheridge talked to Sen. Hillary Clinton about how wonderful gays felt finally being recognized under President Bill Clinton.
“We were very, very hopeful – and in the years that followed, our hearts were broken. We were thrown under the bus. We were pushed aside. All those great promises that were made to us were broken. And I understand politics. I understand how hard things are, to bring about change. But it is many years later now, and what are you going to do to be different than that? I know you’re sitting here now; it’s a year out — more than a year. A year from now, are we going to be left behind like we were before?”
Please click inside to see where I’m going with this. UPDATE: THE WASHINGTON POST REPORTED LATE THURSDAY THAT THE SENATE ARMED SERVICES WILL HOLD A SEPARATE HEARING WITH DEFENSE SEC. ROBERT GATES AND ADMIRAL MIKE MULLEN, CHAIR OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF ON DADT. RACHEL MADDOW LATER SAID THE RESULT COULD BE A DADT-LITE WITH RESTRICTIONS PLACED ON THE INVESTIGATORY PROCESS.
Editor’s note: If you are not already familiar with Pam Spaulding over at Pam’s House Blend, please check her out. Pam is one of the most highly regarded, smart and prolific LGBT bloggers in the nation and her pointed opinions – especially on issue of race – are a must-read. Click inside to read her POV.
Suspect that Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter might be worried about his re-election race as a new Democrat? A recent RealClear Politics report on a new poll shows Specter with “near fatal” numbers – 31% of the electorate think he should be re-elected. He’s still away ahead of his progressive challenger in the Democratic primary – Rep. Joe Sestak – but about even with his Republican opponent, former Rep. Pat Toomey. One thing that might help Specter pull ahead at a time when the GOP is becoming more marginalized is taking bold action on social issues. Click inside to read Specter’s piece, cross posted from the Huffington Post – on why it’s time to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
The LGBT and progressive blogs are sizzling over whether the White House dissed the LGBT community or not after the National Equality March yesterday. Much may depend on your POV. Peter DelVecchio, a lawyer and newswriter for Frontiers IN LA, offers a very unique perspective: President Obama resembles one of those weird sub-atomic particles from quantum physics. Click inside to see how.
UPDATED with the President’s speech. When President Obama walked out onto the HRC stage tonight – I watched on C-SPAN – he received a thunderous reception and then hugged Joe Solomonese, I thought, “Well, there’s a picture we’re going to see forever.”….
What to say but HUH? Rep. Louie Gohert (R-TX) goes on a rant against “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and compares homosexuality to bestiality, necrophilia and pedophilia.
TODAY the Human Rights Campaign is deploying hundreds of volunteers to meet with their congressmembers in Washington, DC to tell them it’s time to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” pass ENDA and take action on a number of other priorities for the LGBT community. Says HRC:
All 
The LGBT blogospher exploded Wednesday morning with reaction to the historic Senate Armed Services hearing Tuesday during which Defense Sec. Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mullen announced their desire to repeal the discriminatory Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, pursuant to President Obama’s State of the Union address saying he wanted to repeal DADT this year.
At the historic 
Editor’s note: If you are not already familiar with 
Suspect that Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter might be worried about his re-election race as a new Democrat? 
The LGBT and progressive blogs are sizzling over whether the White House dissed the LGBT community or not after the National Equality March yesterday. Much may depend on your POV. Peter DelVecchio, a lawyer and newswriter for Frontiers IN LA, offers a very unique perspective: President Obama resembles one of those weird sub-atomic particles from quantum physics. Click inside to see how. 
Subscribe to RSS
