Congressional hearing on immigration included same-sex couple

Steve Orner testified before congressional staffs in a closed door hearing on immigration reform, the Advocate reports.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has this perspective from Senator Bob Casey.

Another cosponsor of immigration equality for gay couples, Sen. Bob Casey, said he'd prefer to see a bill passed separately -- to give it a better chance of passage, given that wholesale immigration reform proved a tough sell last session and may do so again. Mr. Casey, who supports gay civil unions, believes that it "makes no sense" to deport people who meet the requirements of this bill.

"We're saying to tens of thousands of Americans, in effect, 'Sorry, we understand you're in this relationship and are committed to each other and to this country, but you have to leave.' "

And when the deportee's education was paid for with U.S. tax dollars, "that's particularly disturbing," he said.

Senator Casey is one of the so-called "Blue Dogs" in the Senate. His center-right social leanings are noted by his opposition to abortion and gay marriage. Most recently he had expressed reluctance to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act.

Even with Sen. Casey's support, UAFA is still far away from the 51 votes required in the Senate for passage. You can keep track of the Public Whip Count of UAFA via ActOnPrincipals. Click here for the House Whip Count, and here for the Senate Whip Count.

It remains to be seen whether UAFA would be included in the upcoming Comprehensive Immigration Reform. Sen. Patrick Leahy and Rep. Jerry Nadler have penned an op-ed calling for UAFA's inclusion in the CIR. But even with Healthcare Reform edging closer to the finish line, there are still other priorities ahead of CIR: climate change ("Cap and Trade), financial reform, etc.

Up and down

A new poll shows Maine voters are split on Question 1, with 48% against a gay marriage repeal and 48% for. A previous poll has shown the "No" votes leading by several percentage points.

This almost mirrored the Prop. 8 polls leading up the election. Most of the time it was neck-and-neck, but we lost on Election day by several percentage points, leading some to believe that some "yes" people lied to pollsters to hide their bigotry. Would the same story play out this time in Maine? Let's hope not.

My personal opinion is that we win no matter we win in Maine or not. If we win in Maine, that's a clear sign that public opinion is turning to our favor. If we lose, it'd galvanize the community even more, just like Prop. 8 did.

Just look at the young faces at the National Equality Match. That's an entire generation awaken by Prop. 8.

Activists not giving up on RFA

First, David Mixner called on the LGBT community to stop giving money to Democrats who refuse to co-sponsor the RFA.

Then, some really smart and action-oriented folks started a new website Act on Principals , listing positions taken by each lawmaker on RFA. According to their current count, there are 192 yes/leaning yes votes (counting the co-sponsors), 187 no/leaning no votes and 56 unknown positions. 218 votes are required for a bill to be passed by the House.

Of course, the more difficult battle lies in the Senate, where 51 votes are required.

Hats off to these guys, with grassroots movements like this, HRC is becoming more irrelevant with each passing day.

Is 2013 the year?

Since various Washington insiders (Barney Frank the first among them) have put the chances for the Respect for Marriage Act at zero, the legislative path for a repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act appears dead in the water. Many believe the best hope of repealing DOMA lies with the Supreme Court, through the lawsuit filed by GLAD challenging Section 3 of DOMA.

Legal experts have put the chances of GLAD winning the lawsuit at good. But there is one major problem with the GLAD lawsuit. Even if DOMA is founded to be unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, it would only benefit the people living in the states where gay marriage is legal. In other words, for someone living in Alabama, a state expected to be among the last to grant same-sex marriage rights, getting married in Iowa would not entitle them to the 1000+ federal rights enjoyed by married couples, such as the ability to sponsor their spouse for a greencard.

It'd still be a great victory to the LGBT community, but a limited win at best.

But there is a wild card.

Ted Olson and David Boies, the famous duo known for the Bush vs. Gore recount, have filed a lawsuit to challenge state constitutions (Prop. 8) banning gay marriage. A federal judge has set the court date in Jan. 2010. Like the Glad lawsuit, the Prop. 8 suit is expected to take three years to reach the Supreme Court. That will put the Supreme Court hearing very likely in 2013, the same year GLAD's lawsuit would be heard.

While most legal experts agreed the GLAD lawsuit again DOMA stands a very good chance of winning, opinions are split when it comes to the Prop. 8 lawsuit filed by Olson and Boies. Many believe it's either premature or lacks legal footing. The New York Times hosted a lively discussion on the topic.

So if all the stars aligned and we won both cases in the Supreme Court the marriage and equal rights issues would be settled once and for all. That is, of course, the best case scenario. The facts remain that the Supreme Court is currently center-right, with Judge Anthony Kennedy being the swing vote. Judge Kennedy is considered a conservative but appears to be sympathetic to LGBT causes. It still would be extraordinary for him to cast a favorable vote in both cases.

Yes, it's basically a pie-in-the-sky kind of thing, but a little bit of dreaming wouldn't hurt, right?

My thoughts on HRC

Lately HRC President Joe Solomonese has come under more fire from LGBT activists for giving the White House a pass after the underwhelming speech President Obama gave at the HRC annual dinner. Joe didn't help himself when he sent out an email asking us to wait until 2017 before passing judgement on the President's record on gay rights.

I have to say I'm more than disappointed by HRC and Solomonese's actions. When HRC launched their DOMA Repeal campaign, I thought I should stop bitching about them and do something to show my support of the more sensible approach. So I opened my wallet and donated.

Now I'm starting to wonder if the whole DOMA repeal is just a temporary measure by HRC to placate their critics, with no true intention of getting their weight behind it. One thing is for sure: despite their high-profile campaign to repeal DOMA, HRC has not put any pressure on the White House to act on it. Was this a secret deal struck during one of their "strategic" meetings with the Administration?

And Joe, don't expect to see another penny from me. I gave you the benefit of doubt, your action however, showed you're unworthy.

Latest poll from Maine shows 52% would vote to keep gay marriage legal

Obviously winning in Maine would signify an important milestone in the gay marriage fight. This is the first poll I can remember that shows the "No on 1" opinion leading the opposition.

More at Politico.

They finally told the truth

Someone at the White House finally came out and said it. For those who still harbor hope that President Obama meant what he said, time for a reality check.

An anonymous White House advisor relayed the following message via NBC's John Harwood:

Barack Obama is doing well with 90% or more of Democrats so the White House views this opposition as really part of the Internet left fringe.

For a sign of how seriously the White House does or doesn't take this opposition, one adviser told me those bloggers need to take off the pajamas, get dressed, and realize that governing a closely divided country is complicated and difficult.

More at AMERICAblog and Pam's Houseblend.