Edwards Campaigns To End Discriminaton Against Gays

John Edwards Campaigns to end discrimination against gays and lesbians
Campaigning in New Hampshire, Democratic Presidential candidate John Edwardssaid yesterday that he will end "discriminatory" policies towards gay people if elected.

Speaking in New Hampshire, he pledged to try to repeal the Defence of Marriage Act (DOMA), passed in 1996, that banned the federal government from recognising gay marriages or unions and allowed states to refuse to recognise same-sex unions from other states.

I think we should get rid of DOMA; I think DOMA was a mistake from the beginning, and discriminatory, and so I will do everything in my power as President to do that," he told reporters, according to the Washington Post. Yesterday the candidate told an audience of several hundred that he approved of New Hampshire's civil union law.

"The key is to have the federal government recognise civil unions between same-sex couples," he said.
Edwards also pledged to try to end the policy of "Don't Ask Don't Tell," also enacted by President Clinton, which bans openly gay, lesbian or bisexual people from serving in the US military.

Meanwhile, the Republican candidates continued to compete for the anti-gay vote!


Huckabee compares Homosexuality to Necrophelia

Rudy Giuliani's positions on gay rights continues to devolve

Quotes from the GOP Candidates:

“Unless Moses comes down with two stone tablets from Brokeback Mountain to tell us something different, we need to keep that understanding of marriage.”
– Mike Huckabee

“It’s the acts, it’s the various acts that people perform that are sinful”
– Rudolph Giuliani on homosexuality

 “I don't want civil unions or gay marriage.”
 – Mitt Romney

Would President Giuliani Be As Pro-Gay as Mayor Giuliani

Would President Giuliani be as "pro-gay" as the former Mayor of New York? Empire Pride has opened up their Giuliani Files to compare the Mayor of New York's record to the Presidential Candidate.

As Mayor of New York, Giuliani:
Rudy Giuliani was Mayor of New York City from 1994 – 2001.* During his time as Mayor, he worked with NYC’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community to advance a number of important civil rights issues. While the LGBT community often differed with Mayor Giuliani, it also agreed with him in a number of critical areas and was able to work with him to achieve real gains that improved our lives and those of our families.

Not only did Giuliani show a willingness to engage in a dialogue with the LGBT community, he:

-took part in the annual NYC Pride March and held annual Pride celebrations at Gracie Mansion where he lived as Mayor

-established and funded a Hate Crimes Task Force in 2000 so the City could fully investigate and prosecute bias cases

-was one of the first Republicans in New York to publicly support a statewide and federal hate crimes bill that included violence motivated by anti-gay hatred

-supported the passage of a statewide sexual orientation non-discrimination bill

-maintained $1.5 million in funding in the City’s budget for the LGBT community center’s capital campaign

-made high-level appointments of openly LGBT people to his administration

-signed domestic partner legislation in 1998 that at the time was the strongest such bill of its kind in the nation

While as a candidate for President, Giuliani has distanced himself from most of his earlier positions on LGBT issues, the documents and video clips that follow portray the Rudy Giuliani that earned him the “pro-gay” label he still carries with him today in his race for the U.S. Presidency.

Multiple-Mitt Romney Flip Flops on Gay Rights

The Log Cabin Republicans, the gay Republican group that appears to be supporting Rudy Giuliani, ran ads in Iowa attacking Mitt Romney, accusing him of raising taxes as governor of Massachusetts. They should have also pointed out that "Multiple Mitt" flip-flopped on other issues including gay rights. In his failed attempt to run against Sen. Edward Kennedy for the Senate in 1994, Romney claimed he would be a stronger advocate for gay rights than Ted Kennedy! In a letter Romney sent to the Log Cabin Repblicans, he wrote:
"I am more convinced than ever before that as we seek to establish full equality for America's gay and lesbian citizens, I will provide more effective leadership than my opponent...If we are to achieve the goals we share, we must make equality for gays and lesbians a mainstream concern. My opponent cannot do this, I can and will." He also wrote that Clinton's compromise "Don't Ask Don't Tell" military policy was a "step in the right direction." He continues, "I am also convinced that it is the first of a number of steps that will ultimately lead to gays and lesbians being able to serve openly and honestly in our nation's military. That goal will only be reached when preventing discrimination against gays and lesbians is a mainstream concern, which is a goal we share."

But like Rudy Giuliani, Romney has changed his tune and is courting the Republican Christian Right by opposing equal rights for gays and lesbians. Wonder if the Uncle Tom Republicans will support Giuliani despite HIS new opposition to civil unions and support of the military's Don't Ask Don't Tell policy? Remember, they also thought that George W. Bush would do more for gay rights than Bill Clinton!

GOP Courts Christian Right

None of the GOP Presdidential candidates would appear at the Human Rights Campaign/LOGO forum to discuss gay issues, but they did climb all over themselves to appear at the ant-gay Family Research Councils' Values Voters Summit" this weekend. Most of the candidates tried to reinforce conservative doubts about Rudy Guiliani, who in the past has had moderate views and positions on abortion and gay rights. "Multiple-Mitt" Romney, a former supporter of gay rights who claimed he would be more supportive of gay rights than Edward Kennedy when he ran for the Senate, is now championing the radical right's anti-gay agenda. In fact, all of the GOP candidates seem to be competing for the most ant-gay award. The Christian Right is not too happy with the leading GOP candidates, especially Giuliani, and their favorite candiate, Sam Brownback, has dropped out of the race because of his extreme positions. However, all of the remaining candidates (except libertarian Ron Paul) have been pandering to the Christian Right because they cannot win without the support of the base of the Republican Party. Some may see the predicament off the Christian Right as good for gays ("Values Voters" Anarchy Good News for Gays">, but even Giuliani is promising to support the Christian Right's agenda, including appointment of federal judges like Scalia, Thomas, Alito and Roberts, and has distanced himself from gay rights and now tells the Family Research Center that he would support a constitutional amendment to prohibit gay marriages. The danger of Giuliani is that he can appeal to the anti-gay Christian Right and "moderate" voters, making him the GOP's best chance of winning in 2008. The bad news is that he can probably beat Hillary Clinton, who appears to be the Democratic candidate for 2008.

Mission Impossible

It's the Fourth Anniversary of George W. Bush's "Mission Accomplished" speech, and he continues to lie. Today he vetoed the funding bill Congress sent to him because it included a "nonbinding" resolution with a timetable to withdraw U.S. troops in a year. Using Orwellian logic, Bush and the GOP are accusing the Democrats of witholding funds to the military and U.S. troops, even though it is BUSH who is blocking the funding bill, NOT the Democrats.

Following the Karl Rove/GOP playbook, Rudy Giuliani warned that if the Democrats win in 2008, they will retreat from the "war on terrorism" and put the U.S. on the defensive rather than an offensive position on the "war on terror." How can Bush and the GOP keep getting away with this BIG LIE. Do we have to remind them and the American people that it was BUSH and the GOP who allowed the terrorist attack on 9/11 to take place? Richard Clarke and several other former members of the Bush adminstration have testified that BUSH did not even discuss terrorism before 9/11! Cheney's terrorism task force NEVER MET! Bush ignored repeated warnings from the intelligence community about a terrorist attack. BUSH, was the President almost a year before 9/11 and HE failed to protect and defend the U.S., and he has used 9/11 and the perpetual "war on terror" to gain "political capital." Bush and the GOP have weakened the U.S. military, and have aided the growth of terrorism world wide. Terrorism has INCREASED in Iraq since the illegal U.S. invasion and occupation. Bush is a LIAR. He has used the military and U.S. troops and they have paid the price for his incompetence.

Mission Accomplished.

Giuliani Flip Flops Again

In the race to the Christ-Fascist base of the Republican Party, adulterer and part-time drag queen Rudi Giuliani Now Says He Opposes Civil Unions for Gays .
As recently as 2004, on Fox News, he said he supported civil unions. It seems Giuliani is suffering from "mutiplemittromney" syndrome. Even the few "moderate" Republican candidates realize they can't win the GOP nomination without pandering to the anti-gay base of the GOP. So much for the great white hope of the Log Cabin Republicans.

He was for abortion, now he's not so much. He supported gay righs, now he's not so supportive. He committed adultery, but claims to be a defender of "family values." Let's use, what does the book of Leviticus say about adulters?

Rudy Giuliani for President !

I am endorsing Rudy Giuliani for the GOP Presidential nomination! No I will not endorse him for the general election, but I want, BEG, the Republicans to nominate him as their candidate! Why? What could be better for the Democrats than forcing the "pro-family," "pro-life," anti-gay, conservative Republicans to defend a candidate who has been divorced three times, supports Roe v. Wade and a woman's right to abortion, supports most "gay" rights, shacked up with gay men, and likes to dress in drag! Hell, Rudy could be our first "gay" president! His nomination could really shake up the GOP base and cause a split in the Republican Party! Maybe the right-wing anti-gay/pro-life nuts will not vote! Maybe they will form their own party and leave the Republicans with their rich country-club wing.
While Giuliani is OK, or at least tolerable, on most social issues, he was a neo-fascist mayor and would no doubt be a neo-fascist president, cracking down on "crime" (i.e., colored folks), and continue the militaristic nationalist crusades of George W. Bush against the rest of the world. Contrary to the media hype after 9/11, he botched that up too. He would be a disaster as president.

UPdate: here's a video of Rudy Giuliani defending public funding of abortion! (Thanks to TN guerillawomen.

Good News! Giuliani increases his lead over the other GOP candidates!"