National
Doubts persist as today’s ‘Don’t Ask’ cloture vote approaches
Activists fear 60-vote threshold may not be reached
Supporters of open service in the U.S. military are expressing uncertainty — and even doubt — over today’s vote to move forward in the U.S. Senate with major defense legislation containing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal.
Alex Nicholson, executive director of Servicemembers United, is among those saying he doesn’t think there are sufficient votes to move forward with the fiscal year 2011 defense authorization bill and the repeal language in the legislation.
Asked whether he sees success for the cloture vote, set for today at 2:15, Nicholson replied, “As it stands right now, no.”
“I haven’t seen anybody budge,” Nicholson said. “The Republican caucus is standing united and it’s still just a standoff.”
Blame is already being assigned to the White House.
Trevor Thomas, spokesperson for Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, said his organization hasn’t seen an effort from the White House on the issue in recent days.
“We have not seen any signs that the White House has been whipping this vote in the last 48 hours,” Thomas said.
Thomas said he can’t predict what will happen with the cloture vote and maintained SLDN is “taking nothing for granted.”
Still, he said the vote will be “very tight” and repeal supporters need to call their senators to seek their support.
Provided all 59 Democrats vote in favor of moving forward with the defense legislation, at least one Republican vote is necessary to reach the 60-vote threshold to end the filibuster on the legislation.
However, GOP leaders are reportedly telling its caucus to vote against cloture because of limitations on amendments that Democratic leadership will allow on the floor.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has said three amendments would be allowed on the defense authorization bill: a measure stripping the legislation of its “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal language; a measure attaching the DREAM Act, an immigration-related bill, to the legislation; and a measure addressing the “secret holds” senators can place on presidential nominees.
“Sen. Reid, if he has not, absolutely needs to be on the phone with Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe, other members that we’ve discussed — and also be sitting down with them,” Thomas said.
On Monday, two key Republican senators issued statements indicating a lack of support for moving forward with the defense authorization bill, without outright saying they would vote against cloture.
Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) said the Senate should “have the ability to debate more than the three amendments the majority leader is allowing” and noted that the defense authorization bill “is the largest discretionary authorization measure that Congress considers.”
“It is therefore imperative that Senate deliberations on the defense bill be conducted without limitations and in a manner that allows for the consideration of all related amendments that senators may wish to offer,” she said.
An original co-sponsor of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act who’s known for supporting LGBT rights, Snowe also expressed concern about the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal language in the legislation and said a Pentagon report due Dec. 1 would help guide the decision to repeal the 1993 statute.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said in a separate statement on Monday that the Democratic leadership’s decision to limit amendments on the defense authorization bill is “disappointing.”
“It is disappointing, however, that instead of allowing a full and open debate on the defense authorization bill, the majority leader intends to shut Republicans out of the debate,” she said. “Republicans and Democrats should have an equal opportunity to offer relevant amendments to this critical legislation.”
Collins called on Democratic leadership to “work with Republican leaders to negotiate an agreement so that the Senate can debate the defense bill this week.”
Other senators who are seen as potentially breaking with the Republican filibuster on the defense authorization bill are Sens. George Voinovoich (R-Ohio), Scott Brown (R-Mass.) and Richard Lugar (R-Ind.). Their offices haven’t responded to the Blade’s request for comment on the legislation.
Earlier on Tuesday, SLDN added Sens. George LeMieux (R-Fla.) and Kit Bond (R-Mo.) as Republicans who might break with their party to vote for cloture on the defense authorization bill.
The standoff over the number of amendments that will be allowed on the defense authorization bill has become a partisan issue even among LGBT groups.
On Monday, R. Clarke Cooper, executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans, issued a statement criticizing Reid over the rules he’s set for the defense authorization bill.
“There is an overwhelming majority of senators, Democrats and Republicans, who are committed to repealing ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’ but Senator Reid’s partisan tactics could prevent the Senate from moving forward with this critical legislation for our nation’s military,” Cooper said.
Cooper added that the potentially “historic achievement” of the legislation shouldn’t “be scuttled because the Democratic majority has decided to exclude Republicans from the legislative process.”
But Michael Mitchell, executive director of National Stonewall Democrats, responded in a statement on Monday by saying Republicans are the ones obstructing the process.
“I hope that the Log Cabin Republicans will stop trying to blame those who are working through the legislative process to finally repeal [‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’] once and for all and instead work to change the votes of their party’s senators and have it pass with the bipartisan support they claim they have,” Mitchell said.
Noting that Reid has said on the Senate floor he’s willing to work with Republicans on the legislation, Mitchell said a failure to invoke cloture wouldn’t be “the Democrats’ fault and it certainly won’t be the fault of Sen. Harry Reid.”
(Troops photo courtesy of the Department of Defense)
Federal Government
US Census Bureau testing survey on LGBTQ households
Agency proposing questions about sexual orientation and gender identity
The U.S. Census Bureau is seeking public comment on a proposed test of sexual orientation and gender identity questions on the American Community Survey. The test would begin this summer and continue into next year.
The Census Bureau published the request as a Federal Register notice. In its press release the agency noted that the ACS is an ongoing survey that collects detailed housing and socioeconomic data. It allows the Census Bureau to provide timely and relevant housing and socioeconomic statistics, even for low levels of geography.
As part of the process for adding new questions to the ACS, the Census Bureau tests potential questions to evaluate the quality of the data collected.
The Census Bureau proposes testing questions about sexual orientation and gender identity to meet the needs of other federal agencies that have expressed interest in or have identified legal uses for the information, such as enforcing civil rights and equal employment measures.
The test would follow the protocols of the actual ACS — with one person asked to respond to the survey on behalf of the entire household. These particular questions are asked about people 15 years of age or older. Households are invited to respond to the survey online, by paper questionnaire or by phone.
The current Federal Register notice gives the public a final opportunity to provide feedback before the Census Bureau submits its recommendations to the Office of Management and Budget for approval. The public may provide feedback through May 30 online.
The White House
Judy Shepard to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom
Nancy Pelosi is also among this year’s honorees
Beloved LGBTQ advocate Judy Shepard is among the 19 honorees who will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the U.S., the White House announced on Friday.
The mother of Matthew Shepard, who was killed in 1998 in the country’s most notorious anti-gay hate crime, she co-founded the Matthew Shepard Foundation with her husband Dennis to raise awareness about anti-LGBTQ violence.
The organization runs education, outreach, and advocacy programs, many focused on schools.
In a statement shared via the Human Rights Campaign, Shepard said, “This unexpected honor has been very humbling for me, Dennis, and our family. What makes us proud is knowing our President and our nation share our lifelong commitment to making this world a safer, more loving, more respectful, and more peaceful place for everyone.
“I am grateful to everyone whose love and support for our work through the years has sustained me.
“If I had the power to change one thing, I can only dream of the example that Matt’s life and purpose would have shown, had he lived. This honor reminds the world that his life, and every life, is precious.”
Shepard was instrumental in working with then-President Barack Obama for passage of the landmark Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009, which was led in the House by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who will also be honored with a Presidential Medal of Freedom during the ceremony on Friday.
Also in 2009, Shepard published a memoir, “The Meaning of Matthew: My Son’s Murder in Laramie, and a World Transformed,” and was honored with the Black Tie Dinner Elizabeth Birch Equality Award.
“Judy Shepard has been a champion for equality and President Biden’s choice to honor her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom is a testament to what she’s done to be a force of good in the world,” HRC President Kelley Robinson said in a statement.
“A mother who turned unspeakable grief over the loss of her son into a decades-long fight against anti-LGBTQ+ hatred and violence, Judy continues to make a lasting impact in the lives of the LGBTQ+ community,” she said.
“It is because of her advocacy that the first federal hate crimes legislation became law and that countless life-saving trainings, resources and conversations about equality and acceptance are provided each year by the Matthew Shepard Foundation,” Robinson said. “We are honored that Judy is a member of the HRC family and know that her work to create a more inclusive and just world will only continue.”
Other awardees who will be honored by the White House this year are: Actor Michelle Yeoh, entrepreneur and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Jesuit Catholic priest Gregory Boyle, Assistant House Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), former Labor and Education Secretary and former U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.), journalist and former daytime talkshow host Phil Donahue, World War II veteran and civil rights activist Medgar Evers (posthumous), former Vice President Al Gore, civil rights activist and lawyer Clarence B. Jones, former Secretary of State and U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), former U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) (posthumous), Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky, educator and activist Opal Lee, astronaut and former director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center Ellen Ochoa, astronomer Jane Rigby, United Farm Workers President Teresa Romero, and Olympic athlete Jim Thorpe (posthumous).
National
United Methodist Church removes 40-year ban on gay clergy
Delegates also voted for other LGBTQ-inclusive measures
The United Methodist Church on Wednesday removed a ban on gay clergy that was in place for more than 40 years, voting to also allow LGBTQ weddings and end prohibitions on the use of United Methodist funds to “promote acceptance of homosexuality.”
Overturning the policy forbidding the church from ordaining “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” effectively formalized a practice that had caused an estimated quarter of U.S. congregations to leave the church.
The New York Times notes additional votes “affirming L.G.B.T.Q. inclusion in the church are expected before the meeting adjourns on Friday.” Wednesday’s measures were passed overwhelmingly and without debate. Delegates met in Charlotte, N.C.
According to the church’s General Council on Finance and Administration, there were 5,424,175 members in the U.S. in 2022 with an estimated global membership approaching 10 million.
The Times notes that other matters of business last week included a “regionalization” plan, which gave autonomy to different regions such that they can establish their own rules on matters including issues of sexuality — about which international factions are likelier to have more conservative views.
Rev. Kipp Nelson of St. Johns’s on the Lake Methodist Church in Miami shared a statement praising the new developments:
“It is a glorious day in the United Methodist Church. As a worldwide denomination, we have now publicly proclaimed the boundless love of God and finally slung open the doors of our church so that all people, no matter their identities or orientations, may pursue the calling of their hearts.
“Truly, all are loved and belong here among us. I am honored to serve as a pastor in the United Methodist Church for such a time as this, for our future is bright and filled with hope. Praise be, praise be.”
Miyares joins efforts to fight Title IX changes
US Census Bureau testing survey on LGBTQ households
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Comings & Goings
Miss Kitty tackles classical mythology in ‘Metamorphoses’
HHS reverses Trump-era anti-LGBTQ rule
4th Circuit rules gender identity is a protected characteristic
Pride season has begun
New World Bank US executive director: LGBTQ rights are human rights
