Freedom to Marry in the Democratic Platform?

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Update: Within hours of the national Freedom to Marry’s press release, Jake Perkinson was out in the media with denials that he had signed on to the call for a national Democratic Party plank supporting marriage equality, as noted in NanuqFC’s comment. So, no plank if it relies on the VDP Chair to actually take a public stand for a position he has said before he personally supports. Much gnashing of teeth behind the scenes at the VDP with regard to Freedom to Marry and an unnamed reporter, according to inside sources. Meanwhile, Perkinson looks like a square breakfast food served with butter and syrup. ~ GMD

Jake Perkinson, chair of the Vermont Democratic Party, is among eleven state Democratic Party chairs pushing the Democratic National Committee to adopt a same-sex marriage plank to the national platform.

According to Talking Points Memo, in addition to Jake the other party chairs who have signed on are John Burton (California), Jay Jacobs (New York), John Walsh (Massachusetts), Ken Martin (Minnesota), Meredith Wood Smith (Oregon), Boyd Richie (Texas), Mike Tate (Wisconsin), Dwight Pelz (Washington), John Wisniewski (New Jersey) and Joan Wagnon (Kansas).

While some of these states, like Vermont, New York, and California, are obvious choices, some of the others are a big deal. Who would have expected such a position from either Texas or Kansas, for instance?

The letter urging adoption of this plank is signed by party leaders, such as our own Howard Dean, and elected officials from all across the country. Could this be the year that marriage equality makes it into the national platform?

 

6 thoughts on “Freedom to Marry in the Democratic Platform?”

  1. Jake’s backpedalling as fast as possible, with New York’s state Dem chairman spinning right along side.

    Perkinson, meanwhile, said that while he supports gay marriage and thinks the question of a plank is one worth discussing, that he never signed off on being in the release and felt like his comments with the group were “hijacked.”

    “I had had a conversation with the Freedom to Marry people and had said that I was personally supportive of their efforts, but the press release that went out was not anything that was run by me,” he said. “It certainly was a little bit overreaching to put my name on something that I hadn’t even reviewed at that point. The whole thing just seems premature…the conversation was, do you support gay marriage? And yes, obviously I do. I said, what’s the next step? They said that’s all we need for now, and we’ll get back to you….that was two weeks ago.”

    Yeah, Freedom to Marry likely jumped the gun, didn’t cross its t’s or dot its i’s. The process was probably cracked.

    But gosh, I had such hopes that Jake would take the cannoli (and an honest-to goodness stand) and leave the gun, er, the grumbling aside. I would not blame lesbian and gay Vermonters for questioning the sincerity of his political commitment to national marriage equality now.

    It’ll be interesting to see how he dances around this one at tonight’s dinner honoring the late gay Democratic activist and former state chairman David Curtis.

    NanuqFC

    [N]o one in America should ever be afraid to walk down the street holding the hands of the person they love. No one in America should be forced to look over their shoulder because of who they are. ~ President Barack Obama

    The freedom to marry has long been recognized as one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness by free men [and women]. ~ SCOTUS, Loving v. Virginia (1967)

  2. Especially when all the press release does is quote you? I feel as though Perkinson has been a step backwards for the VDP.

    He’s got the national centrist weaseling methodology down pat. However, Vermont is not aligned with the national centrists. We’re proudly independent of the cadre that chooses to move to the right, if a bit more slowly than the radicals who’ve taken over the other party. We’re willing to stand up for human rights even if those rights are unpopular among a crazed minority of loud-mouthed bigots.

    Too bad the VDP has chosen a chair who is so far out of touch with the people who populate the party.

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