Gay community morns the death of U.S. Senator Edward Kennedy

The gay community has lost a valuable ally in the United States Senate, U.S. Senator Edward Kennedy. U.S. Senator Kennedy represented the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, but was a very powerful and influential figure as the Chairman of key U.S. Senate Committees; he therefore represented the entire LGBTI community.

Though facing medical problems of his own, when I emailed Kentucky Equality Federation President Jordan Palmer about the death of U.S. Senator Kennedy, he had the following to say:

"Senator Kennedy in the early years of his career was 'a man before his time' with his progressive thinking,' he had strength of character, unwavering perseverance, and his death is a loss not only for equality, but our entire nation."

For nearly 50 years, Kennedy served alongside 10 U.S. Presidents, his brother, John Fitzgerald Kennedy ("JKF") among them. Kennedy was best known for his impressive list of legislative achievements on health care, civil rights, education, and immigration. Though he disagreed with church leaders on the issues of abortion and gay rights, Kennedy was a devout Catholic who clung to his religion's belief in the potential for human redemption.

U.S. Senator Kennedy responded to Kentucky Equality Federation's disapproval and condemnation (story) of the University of Kentucky's Dr. James Holsinger (story) being nominated for U.S. Surgeon General (mainly a ceremonial post, but acts as the face of public for anti-gay U.S. Surgeon General.

U.S. Senator Kennedy Chaired the U.S. Senate Committee that refused to confirm him.

Kennedy fought for HIV/AIDS funding, was one of the few Senators to vote against the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in 1996, he helped the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act pass the Senate in 2009, and he also introduced the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA).

“The promise of America will never be fulfilled as long as justice is denied to even one among us," Sen. Kennedy said when speaking about ENDA. "The Employment Non-Discrimination Act brings us closer to fulfilling that promise for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens.”

Kennedy had recently urged Massachusetts lawmakers to change current laws so the governor, if necessary, could quickly fill a U.S. Senate vacancy as the chamber debates the contentious healthcare issue.

Serving the people of Massachusetts in the United States Senate has been — and still is — the greatest honor of my public life. As I look ahead, I am convinced that enabling the Governor to fill a Senate vacancy through an interim appointment followed by a special election would best serve the people of our Commonwealth and country should a vacancy occur.

U.S. Senator Kennedy died Tuesday night at his home on Cape Cod after a year-long struggle with brain cancer. He was 77.


© Michael J. Thomas, Kentucky Equality Federation and Marriage Equality Kentucky Blogger

Kentucky's Dr. James W. Holsinger not likely the next U.S. Surgeon General

U.S. Senator Jim Bunning, one of Dr. James W. Holsinger Jr.'s staunchest supporters in his bid to become U.S. surgeon general, suggested Tuesday that the physician's quest for the nation's top medical post is at an end.

And with that, we all breathe relief!

Previous Story: Dr. James Holsinger for anti-gay U.S. Surgeon General. May 31, 2007

Previous Story: Dr. James Holsinger - homophobic nominee for U.S. Surgeon General? June 10, 2007

Previous Story: Kentucky Equality Federation today condemned the nomination of Dr. James W. Holsinger Jr. as U.S. Surgeon General. June 11, 2007

The proposed nomination as Dr. James W. Holsinger Jr. as U.S. Surgeon General by former U.S. President Bush also led Kentucky Equality Federation to issue an action alert to oppose his confirmation in the U.S. Senate.

Click here to read the entire story.

Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway enters U.S. Senate race

Conway's from Louisville, and Louisville politicians traditionally have a difficult time winning statewide office in Kentucky.

Click here to read the story from Blue in the Bluegrass.

Caroline Kennedy comes out in full support of gay marriage

Caroline Kennedy, who is seeking to replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate, has revealed some of her positions on hot-button political issues. Answering questions from Politico through her spokesman, Kennedy said she supports gay marriage. Kennedy left no doubt, though, about her support for gay marriage. She "supports full equality and marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples," her spokesman wrote.

Gay Sex Trumps Corruption on Senate Sin List

Checkout this article about Kentucky's own, Mitch McConnell:

Let's take a civics quiz. In Congress which is worse: being corrupt or being gay? Time is up. Pencils down. If you answered being gay, you've been paying attention, class. Of the 10 Commandments, it is much better to break the one about stealing than the one about sex.

This teaching moment comes to you courtesy of His Holiness, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, who took a powder from reporters crowded into the Capitol this week after the indictment of Ted Stevens, the Senate's longest-serving Republican and once third in line to the presidency.

...........

If you quickly passed the one-minute quiz above, take the rest of your time to call McConnell and tell him the bribery of public officials, the reign of lobbyists and the mortgaging of democracy to special interests are what's crippling Congress, not sex.

The pity is how long these guys hang on (it's always guys) when the facts are overwhelming, the quid pro quo obvious, and the republic's reputation at stake. The Constitution guarantees you're innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, but it doesn't guarantee you a Senate seat in the meantime. (more)

Matthew Shepard Act an empty gesture?

Andrew Sullivan and Steve Chapman's recent comments on the Matthew Shepard Act got me thinking....are they correct? Is the HRC making a bigger deal of this than it really is?

Read their comments before you decide:

A constitutional federal hate crimes bill can only target a minuscule number of "hate crimes" that are related to interstate commerce:

For all its grand intentions, the bill doesn't really do much at all. Supporters would like to make every hate crime a federal offense. But they can't. And the ones they can outlaw are so few and far between that it's hard to see why they bother...

The provision in question snares only those crimes in which someone crosses state lines (as with most federal laws), uses "a channel, facility or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce," or uses a weapon that has traveled across state or international boundaries.

What's the relevance to the murder of Matthew Shepard, or to most of the other attacks on gays? None whatsoever. You might think it's better to do nothing than to do something irrelevant. But for a lot of U.S. Senators, there's no gesture like an empty gesture.

And when you realize that the Shepard case was nothing like the incident the interest groups made it out to be, the pointlessness of this exercise is overwhelming. Except it isn't, of course. The primary point of such a federal bill is to raise funds for a federal interest group like the Human Rights Campaign. It's a perfect fundraising vehicle because it is emotionally visceral, can be framed as a simple case of "are you for beating gay people to death or not?", and gives HRC a slim reed of legislative achievement to sell to its members and donors by direct mail. It's about the money. Period.

Anyone notice a little dislike for a certain national organization? Andrew Sullivan has been critical of the HRC calling them "a patronage wing of the Democratic party, designed primarily to get its members jobs in future Democratic administrations or with Democrats on the Hill (even while Howard Dean treats them like the help)." Sullivan is a gay political commentator and the author of four books, distinguished by his often personal style of political analysis. His political blogs are among the most widely read on the Web.

Regardless if you agree with him or not, U.S. President Bush has promised to veto the legislation saying it is a matter for the states.

Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007 stalls in the U.S. Senate.

The Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007 has stalled in the U.S. Senate after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) withdrew an Iraq defense measure to which the hate crimes bill was attached.

One in six hate crimes is motivated by the victim’s sexual orientation. And, many others are motivated by the victim’s gender identity, gender, or disability.

Extending hate crimes law to include members of the LGBT community was endorsed by more than 210 law enforcement, civil rights, civic and religious organizations, including: the National Sheriffs' Association, International Association of Chiefs of Police, U.S. Conference of Mayors, and the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association.

Democrats were seven votes short of passing the defense bill, which called for the removal of U.S. troops from Iraq by spring 2008. The hate crimes statute was one of several dozen amendments attached for easier passage; a statement from the White House after the House passed an identical hate crimes measure, the "Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007" seemed to indicate that the proposed law would be vetoed were it to be a freestanding bill.

A spokesperson for Reid said it could be a “long time” before the Nevada senator brings the defense bill back to the floor for a vote, which could lead to an indefinite hold on the hate crimes bill if other action isn't taken.

The Matthew Shepard Foundation asks people to continue calls and emails to U.S. Senators in support of the Act.