Solo Gay Congresswoman Joins Obama Committee

The only openly gay Congresswoman, Tammy Baldwin (Dem. Wisconsin) has joined Barack Obama’s national gay leadership and policy committee. She will co-chair the committee with Tobias Wolff, a University of Pennsylvania law professor. Baldwin’s previous GLBT service includes being the head of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s gay leadership team.

“I am proud to support Barack Obama for president and work hard for his election because we share a commitment to equality for all Americans,” she said in a statement. “This is our quest and our common goal.”

Baldwin also stated she was not supporting Obama only because he is a Democrat but because of the differences between the candidates. She listed issues ranging from the Iraq war to health care to gay issues.

She mentioned Obama’s desire to repeal the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” policy which would allow gays and lesbians to serve in the military without discrimination or discharge due to their sexual orientation. Republican John McCain wants the current policy to stay in place.

Obama also supports expanding the federal employment non-discrimination laws and federal hate crime laws to protect the GLBT community. McCain does not, she noted.

Now maybe she can do something with Juliane Appling.

Go West? There’s A New Sheriff In Town!

If you have any idea of what it is to be a good person, you will probably become ill over this.  Julaine Appling, along with others who claim to be “people of God” are at it again.  She is attempting to resurrect and misconstrue a nearly 100-year-old Wisconsin law that states same-sex couples who leave the state to be married could face fines and jail time if they return.  The law, originally aimed at stopping underage couples from going out-of-state to get married is now being considered by Appling’s group, called the Family Council to be applicable to same-sex marriages.

Offending couples could face $10,000 fines, nine months in prison or both. ”To have a marriage that you know is illegal where you reside, and you have the intent of coming back to that state where its illegal, that’s a defrauding of the government,” said the Family Council Julaine Appling.  This is also a person who has been quoted as saying “I think we’ve been extremely tolerant in allowing [homosexuals] to live wherever they choose.”  You can listen to what else she has to say at CNN.com.

On yet another disturbing note, A lawsuit that seeks to force a vote on Oregon’s domestic partnership law ran into a panel of skeptical federal judges Tuesday. 

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