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via Richard Wolf and Brad Heath, USA Today WASHINGTON — A fractured Supreme Court effectively opened the door for same-sex marriages to resume throughout California on Wednesday, saying it did not have the authority to hear a case challenging that state’s ban on gay and lesbian weddings. The court’s 5-4 decision, written by Chief Justice … Continue reading
via Greg Hinz, Crain’s Chicago Business Legal gay marriage may be coming to Illinois as soon as next month. After counting heads and consulting with legislative leaders, the chief sponsors of a bill to permit same-sex couples to get married in the state this morning disclosed they intend to push for a vote in the … Continue reading
via Mark Sherman, Associated Press The Supreme Court plunged into the contentious issue of gay marriage Friday when it agreed to take up California’s ban on same-sex unions and a separate dispute about federal benefits for legally married gay couples. The court’s action gives the justices the chance to say by late June whether gay … Continue reading
via Dan Eggen, The Washington Post Ten days after failing to sail into the White House, Mitt Romney is already being tossed overboard by his party. The former Massachusetts governor — who attracted $1 billion in funding and 59 million votes in his bid to unseat President Obama — has rapidly become persona non grata … Continue reading
via Robert Hulshof-Schmidt, The Examiner Three days after the 2012 general election Washington became the ninth state to achieve marriage equality for same sex couples. Referendum 74, a measure allowing voters to approve or reject legislatively-approved equality, is headed to passage with over 52% of the vote. With the matter decided, same sex couples in … Continue reading
via Steve Holland and John Whitesides, Reuters President Barack Obama rolled to re-election and a second term in the White House on Tuesday with a clear victory over Republican challenger Mitt Romney as the Democrat overcame deep doubts about his handling of the U.S. economy. Romney called Obama to concede after the president’s victories in … Continue reading
via John Whitesides, Reuters President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney make a frenetic dash to a series of crucial swing states on Monday, delivering their final arguments to voters on the last day of an extraordinarily close race for the White House. After a long, bitter and expensive campaign, national polls show Obama … Continue reading
via David McCumber, San Francisco Chronicle Take your choice. Hurricane Sandy is an advantage for: — President Obama, because it blunts Mitt Romney’s perceived momentum. — Romney, because it suppresses early voting. — Obama, because it allows him to look presidential. — Romney, because it puts Obama on the hot seat. — Obama, because it reminds people that Romney wanted … Continue reading
via David Ariosio, CNN A federal appeals court in New York on Thursday became the nation’s second to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act, finding that the Clinton-era law’s denial of federal benefits to married same-sex couples is unconstitutional. The divisive act, which was passed in 1996, bars federal recognition of same-sex marriages and … Continue reading
via David Ingram, Reuters A new South Carolina law that generally requires voters to show photo identification does not discriminate against racial minorities but cannot go into effect until the start of next year, a federal court ruled on Wednesday. The U.S. District Court three-judge panel said too little time remains before the November 6 … Continue reading
via Miranda Leitsinger, NBC News Support for same-sex marriage rose among voters of all political stripes in recent years, but it surged so much among Democrats that the partisan divide on the issue is wider than ever, according to a national survey released Tuesday by the Pew Research Center. Sixty-five percent of Democrats are now … Continue reading
via Emily Le Coz, The Huffington Post * Abortion opponents say laws promote safety, better care * Mississippi could be first state without abortion facility * Nearly 40 laws passed this year, 60 in 2011 American women face increasing legal obstacles to obtaining abortions as more states pass laws restricting access, some so stringent they … Continue reading
via MSNBC A federal appeals court has ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act, a law that denies a host of federal benefits to same-sex married couples, is unconstitutional. The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston ruled Thursday that the act known as DoMA, which defines marriage as a union between a man … Continue reading
via Sophia Tareen, The Huffington Post More than two dozen gay and lesbian couples filed lawsuits Wednesday arguing that it’s unconstitutional for Illinois to deny them the right to marry, a move advocates hope will lead to legalized same-sex marriage in the state. The two lawsuits – backed by the American Civil Liberties Union of … Continue reading
via The Huffington Post A coalition of groups supporting immigrants has recruited teams of volunteers to help push programs they hope will add thousands of new U.S. citizens to the voter rolls in several states in time for the November presidential election. The national push comes after Democratic President Barack Obama has failed to deliver … Continue reading
via Andrew Maloney, Chicago Sun-Times Despite a push by gay lawmakers, the effort to legalize gay marriage in Illinois is unlikely to get off the ground this year, the chief sponsor of a marriage proposal said. State Rep. Greg Harris (D–Chicago) told the Chicago Sun-Times that reeling in Medicaid and pensions programs as well as … Continue reading
via Eric Zorn, Chicago Tribune New Hampshire House Bill 1659 is titled the “Women’s Right to Know Act,” but a more accurate title would be the “Activists’ Right to Lie to Women Act.” The measure, now moving through the Granite State Legislature, requires that at least 24 hours before undergoing a medical abortion, a woman … Continue reading
via Norma Love, The Huffington Post New Hampshire lawmakers on Wednesday rejected a bill that would have made their state legislature the first one to repeal a gay marriage law, handing gay-rights supporters a key victory in the Northeast, where same-sex marriage is prevalent. The state House voted 211-116 to kill the measure, ending a … Continue reading
via Pam Belluck, The New York Times Leticia Parra, a mother of five scraping by on income from her husband’s sporadic construction jobs, relied on the Planned Parenthood clinic in San Carlos, an impoverished town in South Texas, for breast cancer screenings, free birth control pills and pap smears for cervical cancer. But the clinic … Continue reading
via Michael McAuliff and Ryan Grim, The Huffington Post Marijuana activists may gain an unexpectedly high-profile champion for their cause next year, thanks to Bob Kerrey’s sudden decision to jump into the Nebraska contest for retiring Sen. Ben Nelson’s seat. Pot reformers have their fingers crossed. Kerrey, a Democratic senator for Nebraska in the 1990s, … Continue reading
via Editorial Board, The New York Times State legislators in New Hampshire, who are on the verge of writing government-sanctioned discrimination back into state law, might want to take a look at a powerful ruling on marriage equality by the federal appeals court in San Francisco. A three-judge panel on the court ruled 2 to … Continue reading
via Lucia Graves, The Huffington Post As New Hampshire lawmakers gear up for a vote to repeal the state’s same-sex marriage law, state Rep. Seth Cohn (R) is warning the effort could hurt Republicans hoping to hold power after the 2012 elections. Should state lawmakers succeed in reversing the decision, New Hampshire would become the … Continue reading
via Gay Marriage Watch 42% of Americans live in 21 states with various forms of IA, MA, NH, NY, VT, WA); civil union (DE, HI, IL, NJ, RI); or domestic partnership (CA, CT, DC, CO, MD, ME, NV, NM, OR, WI). Since 1993, all American states have taken positions on marriage equality. Each state allows … Continue reading
via Tom Watkins, CNN A bipartisan group of lawmakers in Washington State voted Wednesday in favor of a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage, putting Washington on the path toward becoming the seventh state in the nation to legalize marriage for gay and lesbian couples. “With today’s vote, we tell the nation that Washington state … Continue reading
via CNN California’s voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage violates the U.S. Constitution, a federal appeals court in San Francisco ruled Tuesday. The decision by a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is expected to be appealed, to either the full court or to the U.S. Supreme Court. But supporters of same-sex … Continue reading
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