Gay Marriage in New York

[Daniel]

The govenor of New York, Elliot Spitzer, made a campaign promise to introduce gay marriage legislation and folks in my home state of NY have been wondering when he was going to belly up to the bar and make good on that promise.

Well.. today the NYTimes reports.....

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/23/ny...hp&oref=slogin

Spitzer Plans to Introduce Gay Marriage Bill

By NICHOLAS CONFESSORE
Published: April 23, 2007

Gov. Eliot Spitzer will introduce a bill in the coming weeks to legalize same-sex marriage in New York, his spokeswoman said Friday, a move that would propel New York to the forefront of one of the most contentious issues in politics.

Though he has long voiced support for same-sex marriage and promised during his campaign last year to introduce legislation to legalize it, Mr. Spitzer did not mention the issue in his State of the State speech in January or in remarks a week ago outlining his priorities for the remainder of the legislative session, which ends June 21.

But the spokeswoman, Christine Anderson, said that Mr. Spitzer would not back away from his campaign pledge.

“The governor made a commitment to advance a program bill, and he will fulfill that commitment during this legislative session,” Ms. Anderson said, using the term that refers to legislation introduced directly by the governor rather than by a state agency or by the Legislature.

Several states allow some form of civil unions for same-sex couples, including Connecticut, where lawmakers are debating a measure that would take the further step of legalizing marriage for lesbians and gay men. Massachusetts is the only state where same-sex marriage is legal.

Any legislation to make New York the second such state would face a steep climb in Albany, a fact that Mr. Spitzer has acknowledged. Explaining why he did not include the gay-marriage bill among his post-budget legislative priorities, Mr. Spitzer said last week that he “was listing bills that I think we can and should get passed by the Legislature in the next few weeks. And so I am focusing now on politics as the art of the possible.

“I think most who are close to the issue would agree with me that it’s not likely to be passed in the next nine and a half weeks,” Mr. Spitzer added.

Legislation to allow same-sex marriage has never made it to a floor vote in either the Assembly, which has a Democratic majority, or the Republican-controlled State Senate. Sheldon Silver, the Assembly speaker, has declined to take a stand on the issue. Joseph L. Bruno, the Senate majority leader, has supported legislation to outlaw hate crimes and workplace discrimination against gays, but he remains opposed to same-sex marriage.

Even among lawmakers who say they favor the legislation, there is some division over the best strategy to get it passed. Two legislators from Manhattan, State Senator Thomas K. Duane and Assemblyman Richard N. Gottfried, both Democrats, have tried for several years to shepherd a gay-marriage bill through the Legislature and are trying again this year. That bill has at least 14 sponsors in the Senate and 42 in the Assembly.

If Mr. Spitzer does propose a bill, it is unclear how much muscle he will be willing — or able — to put behind it. The priorities he has outlined — such as overhauling the state’s campaign finance laws and introducing a constitutional amendment to require nonpartisan legislative redistricting — already pose a considerable challenge. That would leave Mr. Spitzer with little political bandwidth to build support for another controversial bill.

The governor has also had few opportunities to build bridges to constituencies that present the strongest grass-roots opposition to gay marriage, such as Roman Catholic Church officials and other religious leaders. Church leaders already oppose Mr. Spitzer’s support of embryonic stem cell research, and an initiative that might have softened the blow of gay marriage — a tax credit for parents who send their children to parochial schools — did not make it into the budget this year.

Gay-rights groups are scheduled to convene in Albany early next month for a day of intensive lobbying, and several lawmakers and same-sex marriage advocates said they hoped that Mr. Spitzer would formally introduce his proposal before then.

“I don’t think the governor has dropped the ball on this,” said Alan Van Capelle, executive director of Empire State Pride Agenda, a gay-rights group. “We’ve been talking with the governor’s people about this. At every moment they have brainstormed with us in some very creative ways about how to accomplish this agenda.”

Mr. Van Capelle said he shared Mr. Spitzer’s assessment that the measure was unlikely to pass both chambers of the Legislature this year, but he emphasized that the governor’s proposal would give it strategic and symbolic weight.

Gary Parker, the founder of Greater Voices, a coalition of gay-oriented political clubs in New York City, said the fact that every statewide elected official now supports gay marriage had heartened advocates.

“During the Pataki administration, there was a lot of frustration,” Mr. Parker said. “We felt extremely stagnant and stifled. Now there is movement. And the fact that there is discussion is progress.”

The fun begins! Fasten your seat belts!

I'm excited!

[davidb]

This will truly be an interesting process! Can't wait to see how it all lines up.

_________________________________________
What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us.

--Emerson

[pnggrad79]

Good luck, New York. You know history repeats itself...the Northeast was the first to outlaw slavery and it took a civil war and thousands killed for slavery to finally be done away with here in the South. The same thing is happening with gay rights. When are we going to stop this retarded mentality in the South? What is it about warm climates that makes everyone a blithering idiot when it comes to civil rights?

[andrewlittle]

Originally Posted by pnggrad79

When are we going to stop this retarded mentality in the South? What is it about warm climates that makes everyone a blithering idiot when it comes to civil rights?

Funny! I thought it was the result of constantly seeing corn and smelling pig manure.

[davidb]

Will this force Senator Clinton to take a position on the issue?

_________________________________________
What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us.

--Emerson

[dsdrane]

One might reasonably imagine it would...

...and one might reasonably not hold one's breath.

(I'm not bitter.)

[u-dog]

but someone should caution Mr. Van Capelle about the use of the word "agenda" gay people should probably just delete that word from our vocabularies don't you think?

[Alecto]

For those of you who know about local politics in Buffalo, you'll know why I'm saying that I'm unimpressed until I see something actually DONE. Not a press release saying "No, seriously I'm gonna do this. I swear. Again."

As for an "agenda"; I think EVERY organization of any kind has to have an agenda. Otherwise they're not very organized, right? I hate letting "them" frame the arguments, and decide which language we can use, and all of that. We can't use "agenda" because the they'll just say "See? We toldja so!" even though the groups that they belong to have agendas far more harmful and deceptive.

[Daniel]

Originally Posted by dsdrane

One might reasonably imagine it would...

...and one might reasonably not hold one's breath.

(I'm not bitter.)

I'm not holding my breath either. There isn't one major candidate on the scene (please correct me if I am in error) who supports gay marriage. They all give it a wide berth- Hillary included. I have seen her say that she support gay rights, but when it comes down to it, she does not support marriage. I have friends who say she is secretly in our court, but I say big-you-know-what-whoop to that (am I starting to sound like a liberal New Yorker now?). In short, she's trying to have it both ways, that is, appear to gay voters as being in their corner while wooing conservatives with her 'let's not scare the horses' talk.

Doing what it takes to get elected is a far cry from doing what is right. And they call that leadership.

We gotta remember, she's married to the guy who screwed up the whole Military Thing as well as signed DOMA.

If I have to, I will vote for her through gritted teeth.

[u-dog]

As for an "agenda"; I think EVERY organization of any kind has to have an agenda. Otherwise they're not very organized, right? I hate letting "them" frame the arguments, and decide which language we can use, and all of that. We can't use "agenda" because the they'll just say "See? We toldja so!" even though the groups that they belong to have agendas far more harmful and deceptive.

I didn't say that the movement doesn't NEED an agenda, just that we shouldn't CALL IT an "agenda". We need... a roadmap... a plan... a path...a platform.

[dsdrane]

Originally Posted by u-dog

I didn't say that the movement doesn't NEED an agenda, just that we shouldn't CALL IT an "agenda". We need...a path....

Yes, yes, a path, a path...with some shrubbery!

[u-dog]

You are SOOOOOO GAY!!!! (and I love you for it)

[dsdrane]

Oh...U!

[Daniel]

How about pink peonies? Mr. Husband and I had them at our wedding in Saratoga Springs at the Apelphi Hotel. A nice Buddhist ceremony ( ) with a harpist playing in the garden afterwards.

It would be nice to have another booster shot wedding when Mr. Spitzer's legistlation passes.

I give it 2 to 5 years to get it passed. It's not going to be easy.

Can you spell Catholic League?

[Freespirited]

Hey Daniel!


I sure hope it passes! here in my homestate of New Jersey the civil union law came into affect just over a month ago, and I still haven't gotten any requests for a civil union ceremony appointment in my court yet! funny ha!?


LEANDRO

[BrentRichards]

Originally Posted by dsdrane

Yes, yes, a path, a path...with some shrubbery!

Ni! Ni! Ni!

[u-dog]

a knight who until recently said... "Ni!"

With your description of the cabin and the plaid shirts I had you pegged for a lumberjack for sure!

[BrentRichards]

Originally Posted by u-dog

a knight who until recently said... "Ni!"

With your description of the cabin and the plaid shirts I had you pegged for a lumberjack for sure!

I'm not a lumberjack, but I'm ok ... (wow, this thread has really degenerated)

[u-dog]

An affinity for Monty Python's Flying circus can serve to balance out the whole Republican thing. Your chances of getting into heaven have improved 10 fold.

[andrewlittle]

Originally Posted by u-dog

An affinity for Monty Python's Flying circus can serve to balance out the whole Republican thing. Your chances of getting into heaven have improved 10 fold.

Anyone for a drag race.