Obama’s win represents ‘historic milestone’ for gays. Plus: McCain won 27 percent of the gay vote.
LGBT leaders criticized for being ‘very timid and soft.’
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By Chris Johnson
Friday, June 06, 2008
The only open lesbian in the U.S. House of Representatives is predicting that in the next session of Congress, bills related to employment non-discrimination and hate crimes will have a better chance of passing than legislation aimed at repealing the Defense of Marriage Act or “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.) made the comments last week at a Center for American Progress forum geared toward highlighting the importance of the Domestic Partner Benefits and Obligations Act, which would grant the partners of gay federal employees the same benefits that are available to the spouses of straight counterparts.
Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) joined Baldwin in the panel discussion. Other speakers at the event included former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former U.S. Ambassador to Romania Michael Guest, who resigned his 26-year career as a Foreign Service officer last year in protest of federal employment practices.
Baldwin said she is “very optimistic” that ENDA and a hate crimes measure would pass Congress next session, particularly if Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, who has supported the initiatives, takes the White House.
She also said she expects progress on the Domestic Partner Benefits and Obligations Act, which has not moved this session from the House and Senate committees to which it had been assigned.
But Baldwin said the success in “repealing discriminatory laws” already on the books “is a little less clear.”
“I think we will see more discretion on those — whether or not it can move to next level of repeal will be a challenge,” she said.
Baldwin told the Blade she did not “have a perfect crystal ball” for what would happen in the next Congress, but said she thinks it would be easier to “hit the ground running” with ENDA and a hate crimes measure as opposed to other initiatives.
She noted that Congress has already taken some action on ENDA and hate crimes this session, so lawmakers are familiar with those issues and more willing to take up the matters again next year.
Baldwin also said there are difficulties in repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and the Defense of Marriage Act because some of the lawmakers who voted for the measures in the 1990s are still in Congress.
Smith, who is up for re-election in Oregon this year, expressed similar sentiments that ENDA and a hate crimes measure would pass Congress when a new president takes over in 2009 — but the senator asserted these acts would pass whether the new chief executive is Obama or Republican candidate Sen. John McCain.
Smith, who was recently endorsed by Log Cabin Republicans, said McCain has “been with [him] on a number of gay and lesbian issues,” but did not during the panel discussion mention any issues they agreed upon.
“I know John McCain’s heart,” he said. “I just never found John McCain really hard over on these issues — or ideologically driven on these issues.”
Smith also struggled with words when trying to defend his support for benefits for the partners of gay federal employees as well as his previous support for the Federal Marriage Amendment.
The senator said he voted for the FMA because he didn’t want “federal judges to impose it on other states that were voting differently.”
“If states want to democratically go about it, then that’s what they should do, but I do not want a federal judge imposing it on other parts of the jurisdiction,” he said.
Smith noted he has been a “devout Mormon” for 33 years and said if the government starts redefining marriage it could have detrimental consequences for some groups.
He added that “tinkering” with the definition of marriage as between one man and one woman would have implications that “are much broader than the gay and lesbian community.”
Both lawmakers expressed their support for Domestic Partner Benefits and Obligations Act during the event.
Smith said “with a new Congress and a new president, the stage is set” and the number of Senate co-sponsors for the bill will grow to get it passed next session.
Baldwin expressed similar optimism that the House would pass the legislation and called congressional action this session “a dress rehearsal” for passage that would come later.
Under current policy, partners of gay foreign service officers do not qualify for safety training and language classes, access to health services, medication in the event of an epidemic, financial assistance in the event of an evacuation, help obtaining visas and assistance with employment opportunities, all of which the State Department grants to those it deems “eligible family members.”
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