Three things have happened: 1) The Senator was on the Tim Johnson radio show on WTSA in Brattleboro yesterday. A caller asked the Senator whether he would support the repeal of DOMA. The Senator reportedly said he would support repeal. 2) The Senator has released a letter explicitly indicating his intention to support the repeal of DOMA (excerpt below). 3) The Senator’s office has released a letter indicating he would support repeal of DADT (excerpt 2).
On DOMA:
As a Vermonter who has been married for 46 years, I am a great fan of the institution of marriage. […]
I believe that all people should be treated equally and that the issue of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender rights — like the rights for women, racial minorities, and people with disabilities — is one of basic civil rights for all people. Secondly, states, not the Federal Government, have traditionally set laws on marriage. Just as Vermont passed a bill to recognize same-sex marriages, I believe that each state should retain authority to define marriage as it sees fit.
Now that states that have voted to give full marriage rights to same-sex couples, the Federal government should not interfere with those laws. Vermont and other states have chosen to give these rights to same-sex couples, and states should be allowed to do that. DOMA now can be used to withhold those rights in some instances, and I would vote to repeal it.
On DADT:
The current policy on service of gay and lesbian citizens is that they can serve as long as they keep their sexual orientation secret. […] This policy has resulted in the discharge of more than 10,000 [sic; the number is actually more than 13,000] well-trained, committed individuals due to their sexual orientation. Instead, I believe each and every member of our military should be judged solely on their ability to get the job done for our country regardless of their sexual orientation.
On March 3, 2009, the Military Readiness Enhancement Act of 2007 was introduced in the House of Representatives. This bill would repeal the current Department of Defense (DoD) policy concerning homosexuality in the Armed Forces by prohibiting discrimination against any member of the Armed Forces or any person seeking to become a member. […] This bill has been referred to the House Committee on Armed Services where it awaits further consideration. Should similar legislation be introduced in the Senate, I plan to support it.
These statements didn’t come out of the blue. Local activists pushed to get the Senator to take a public stand ahead of the VDP State Committee’s endorsement vote for Leahy on July 18.
In the last two weeks an unknown but relatively substantial number of Vermonters – including VDP chairwoman Judy Bevans — have called or emailed the Senator’s office to raise the issue. According to state committee supporters of LGBT equality, without a public statement from Senator Leahy, there might have been as many as 18 votes against endorsement — * enough to derail what would otherwise be a foregone conclusion.* [corrected: if every voting delegate attended the meeting, there would be 47 votes; an endorsement requires 2/3 plus one or 32 votes; 47-18 = 29]
It became an issue because Senator Leahy voted for DOMA in 1996.
The statements are also happening within the context of the U.S. Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Judge Sotomayor, a major priority for the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
So far so good. Our senior Senator has promised to support repeal of two laws enacting official discrimination against Americans on the basis of their sexual orientation. So, for that matter, has the President. Let’s keep the pressure on so their statements are only the beginning of real action.
Didn’tja hate those questions on tests in school?!
But here it’s kind of interesting and John Kerry definitely puts Mr. Leahy’s pale little statement in the shade.
Senator Kerry (you know, the Dem from Massachusetts who ran such an awful campaign for president five years ago) is making a statement on Friday July 10th in support of the Massachusetts Attorney General’s suing the federal government over DOMA:
I love that: “fundamentally unfair,” get it?
And, btw, Mr. Kerry was the only senator running for re-election in 1996 who voted against the bill. Mr. Leahy wasn’t up for re-election until two years later, and he still voted FOR the bill. Right there, that tells you something about who’s serious and who is maybe appeasing the “troublemakers.”
While these Leahy statements are definitely progress, I’m wondering when the good Senator will be introducing his bill for repeal of DOMA and putting his considerable influence behind it’s passage.
The Valley News, newspaper of record for the Upper Connecticut River Valley, has a front page story on Senator Leahy’s change of heart with regard to DOMA. John Gregg, the paper’s political editor, quotes from the Senator’s call-in with WTSA.
A friend who lives in their distribution area says Gregg quotes our A.G., Bill Sorrell (another [former?] DOMA supporter, given he argued the case against in Baker v. State, which resulted in civil unions) as to why Vermont can’t join the Massachusetts lawsuit. Gary Busek of GLAD (the MA-based organization that provided support and co-counsel in the Baker case, I believe, and IIRC, has its own lawsuit against specific provisions of DOMA affecting federal employees and their spouses) is quoted thus:
And Senator Leahy was “unavailable for comment.”
Here’s the money quote from Leahy on the radio show, responding to a question about DOMA:
But the Valley News doesn’t post its content on line (gotta sell those papers), so if you want the whole story — better go get it and fork over your 75 cents.
NanuqFC
Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle. – Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.
The Lesbian and Gay Victory Fund thinks Sen. Leahy deserves an award:
Mr. Leahy grudgingly admits that maybe the homophobic, unconstitutional, discriminatory DOMA law has “served its purpose,” and he’s gonna get an award! HOO- ra.
Well, actually, the announcement was posted Friday, so it probably has more to do with his introducing the “Uniting American Families Act,” which says American gays and lesbians can bring their foreign-born “long-term partners” into the country on the same basis that straight Americans can bring their spouses in. No repeated filings for short-term visas.
Yeah, okay, that’s cool. BUT IT STILL TREATS US LIKE A SEPARATE CLASS OF CITIZENS. Sheesh, if we could just get rid of DOMA and get a Supreme Court ruling or two to run our way, we could do away with all this bandaid crap and just be like everyone else! What is so difficult about understanding that?!?!
And here’s another bandaid: Tammy Baldwin’s Domestic Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act.
So, fine as far as it goes, but it doesn’t go far enough! IF it passes, it only gets equality for federal employees, and no one else.
I get that awards are given as a kind of spotlight, in part to make sure the honoree doesn’t back off whatever tiny amount of progress he or she might have made. Solidifying gains and all that. But why aren’t these people “honoring” actual, committed allies, like John Kerry?!
Maybe the contrast between a real ally and someone who needs to be coaxed and prodded and buffed and shined would just be too obvious.
Previous honorees: John Corzine (Gov. of NJ), Richard Daly (Mayor of Chicago; the son, not the dad), Barney Frank and Ted Kennedy (okay, I’ll lower my eyebrows on those two), Tom Daschle, and a bunch of people I don’t know who they are.
Congratulations, Senator Leahy. Now DO SOMETHING to show you’ve earned it!