The Associated Press files a video report in advance of today's vote in North Carolina on protecting marriage:
Chuck Todd: "Gay Money Has Replaced Wall Street Money"
May 8, 2012 at 8:00 am
Chuck Todd explains why he thinks Joe Biden (and now Dept. of Education Secretary Arne Duncan) are publicly supporting SSM now:
[The White House is] so sensitive to Biden doing this because, number one, gay money in this election has replaced Wall Street money. It has been the gay community that has put in money in a way to this President that is a very, very important part of the fundraising operation for the President Obama campaign. The second part of this, they are sensitive to the fact that here they have done everything to marriage saying they don’t want to take away anybody’s rights that already have them, but they don’t like the idea that it brings attention to what you were just saying. What Biden has done has brought attention to the fact that the President is not, quote, “there yet.” -- Mediaite
AP: Colorado Civil Union Supporters "Worry About Next Step"
May 8, 2012 at 7:00 am
Democrats pushing for Colorado civil unions worried Friday about the bill's fate after a pointed warning from the Republican House speaker about legislators attacking the motives of opponents.
The bill calling for legal protections for gay couples similar to marriage passed with a 6-5 vote late Thursday in the GOP-led judiciary committee that rejected the same legislation last year.
... McNulty said Senate Democrats took months to move the bill to the House and did it on purpose to force a decision within the final days of the legislative session.
"I think that there are those in the Democratic Party that want to make sure that this issue is a political issue in November," he said, referring to the upcoming election.
Democratic Rep. Daniel Kagan, a member of the House Judiciary Committee that passed the bill, urged Republicans to schedule the necessary hearings on the bill.
"We're here to do the work of the people, and the people very much want us to make a decision on civil unions. It's not a trivial matter," he said.
Final PPP Poll: NC Marriage Amendment Winning by 16 Points!
May 7, 2012 at 3:00 pm
More good news for those looking to close the deal in North Carolina:
"Our final marriage amendment poll finds it leading by a 55-39 margin, little change from a week ago when it was ahead 55-41. The final yes percentage will likely be somewhere in the 57-59% range depending on how the undecideds break." -- Public Policy Polling
Critical vote in North Carolina Tomorrow!
May 7, 2012 at 2:40 pm
Dear Marriage Supporter,
As you know, North Carolina voters go to the polls tomorrow with an opportunity to become the 31st state to adopt a constitutional amendment on marriage.
The latest polling data suggests that support for the amendment is stabilizing after a massive barrage of misleading ads from pro-SSM groups in the state. But polling models—especially in low-turnout primary elections—are heavily dependent on likely voter predictions.
It all comes down to turnout.
The reality is, it doesn't matter what the polls say—the only way for North Carolina to protect marriage tomorrow is for marriage supporters to actually cast their votes at polling places across the state tomorrow.
And that's why I need your help today.
Will you contact everyone you know in North Carolina
and remind them how critical it is that they
vote YES tomorrow on the Marriage Protection
Amendment (also called Amendment 1)?
Our opponents are counting on a major upset. They have heavily organized to get their supporters to the polls tomorrow, and believe that marriage supporters simply don't care enough to take the time to vote for marriage.
I know in my heart that they are wrong. The only way the marriage amendment even made it to the ballot is because of the tireless efforts of volunteers across the state working long hours to spread the word about marriage and its importance for the family and the next generation.
But we need to support the work of the amazing volunteer staff at Vote for Marriage NC. And the best way for you to do that is to forward this email to anyone you know who lives in North Carolina. Remind them how much is riding on this one election.
NOM has already donated over $425,000 to the amendment campaign, and our supporters have given another $125,000 directly to the campaign. But that amount pales in comparison to the millions the other side has poured into this effort. They know just how much is at stake—not just for North Carolina, but for the nation (and Supreme Court) that is watching.
Please, take a moment right now to forward this message to friends and family in North Carolina, or use the social media buttons below to share this news across Facebook and Twitter.
Video of Brian Brown on Fox News: "Strong Support For North Carolina Amendment to Pass"
May 7, 2012 at 2:35 pm
This weekend our President Brian Brown appeared on FOX News opposite Freedom to Marry's Mark Solomon in advance of the North Carolina vote tomorrow:
Brown has the last word:
"..there's very strong support for the amendment to pass and I think that's going to send a strong message to the four other states that are going to have marriage amendments on the ballot in November."
NOM President Brian Brown: Biden Declaring War on 30 U.S. States
May 7, 2012 at 2:30 pm
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 7, 2012
Contact: Anath Hartmann or Elizabeth Ray (703-683-5004)
"Vice President Joe Biden is declaring war on those 30 states in America that have adopted constitutional amendments defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman."—Brian Brown, NOM president—
Washington, D.C. — Following Vice President Joe Biden's remarks yesterday on NBC's "Meet The Press" regarding his views on same-sex marriage, Brian Brown, president of the National Organization for Marriage, responded:
"It's always hard to know what Vice President Biden is doing whenever he speaks. He could be launching a trial balloon, or he could just be being Biden with his foot in his mouth again. Whether he realizes it or not, Biden is declaring war on those 30 states in America that have adopted constitutional amendments defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman. This is soon to be 31 states when North Carolina, the site of the Democratic convention this August, enacts a constitutional amendment preserving traditional marriage tomorrow. What Joe Biden wants—genderless marriage that kowtows to the demands of gay couples—cannot exist alongside traditional marriage. Only one definition of marriage can exist. Joe Biden just made gay marriage a major issue in the presidential contest in critical swing states whose voters have adopted marriage amendments—including Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, Virginia and Nevada. We will make sure that voters in these states, and others, know that if the Obama/Biden ticket is reelected, our marriage laws will be at grave risk."
###
To schedule an interview with Brian Brown, President of the National Organization for Marriage, please contact Elizabeth Ray (x130), [email protected], or Anath Hartmann, [email protected], at 703-683-5004.
Paid for by The National Organization for Marriage, Brian Brown, president. 2029 K Street NW, Suite 300 Washington, DC 20006, not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. New § 68A.405(1)(f) & (h).
SSM Group, Sensing Impending Loss in NC, Plan to Seek Marriage Licenses Anyway
May 7, 2012 at 2:00 pm
This tactic, used by pro-SSM activists, reminds us of why North Carolina needs the Marriage Protection Amendment which will be voted upon tomorrow: when activists employ such tactics, what will be standing to defend marriage? Statutory law, or a Constitutional Amendment approved by a majority of North Carolinians?
On May 8th, North Carolinians will decide on a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would ban marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships for same-sex couples. Beginning the next morning, the WE DO Campaign will visit eight counties where more than forty LGBT couples will apply for marriage licenses in their local communities, with clergy, elected officials, family, and community members accompanying them in support. The couples will be denied licenses because they do not meet the legal requirements for marriage in North Carolina, which stipulate that partners must be of the opposite sex. In each community, the WE DO event will also include a Prayer Service for Reconciliation led by clergy. In select counties, couples and allies will conduct a sit-in at the Register of Deeds Office after the denials occur, as a peaceful act of civil disobedience. -- Southern Equality
Politico: NC Marriage Amendment "Poised to Pass"
May 7, 2012 at 1:00 pm
Politico's Morning Score this morning:
POISED TO PASS: Public Policy Polling, the Democratic firm based in North Carolina, released fresh numbers overnight that show that the anti-gay marriage amendment ahead by a 55-39 margin. "The final yes percentage will likely be somewhere in the 57-59% range depending on how the undecideds break," pollster Tom Jensen writes. [...] Nate Silver blogs that the measure is likely to pass and rounds up past results for gay marriage bans in a handy graphic: http://nyti.ms/J92Eui.
STRONG SUPPORT IN RURAL AREAS: The Charlotte Observer reports that "it's the rural regions - where homemade pro-amendment signs share roadside space with mass-produced ones - that are expected to carry the amendment to passage...The base of support includes churches, GOP groups and boards of commissioners in several counties, including Caldwell, Catawba, Gaston, Union and Lincoln, which passed resolutions in favor of the amendment. In rural areas, signs of support for the amendment are common, like down a stretch of N.C. 27 in Iron Station in Lincoln County. Anti-amendment signs are more dominate in urban areas, including several of Charlotte's neighborhoods." http://bit.ly/Jb5rSb
Infographic: The State of Marriage in the States
May 7, 2012 at 12:00 pm
Stateline has produced a helpful infographic showing the landscape of marriage laws across the United States and a history of various state-level marriage votes over the years (click for full-size):
It is interesting to note that, with the exceptions of California, Maine, and South Dakota, every state which has voted to protect marriage has done so by more than 55%. Will North Carolina join these states tomorrow?
NC Campaign Update: Pastors Rally v. Cast of "Wicked"
May 7, 2012 at 11:00 am
This says it all:
"On Monday, Vote for Marriage will have a rally with ministers in North Raleigh. The Coalition to Protect on Monday will get help staffing its phone bank from members of the cast of “Wicked,” the traveling Broadway show currently playing in Durham." -- The News Observer
NYT Blog: North Carolina’s Marriage Amendment "Appears Likely to Pass"
May 7, 2012 at 10:00 am
No reason to lessen our efforts, but reason to be encouraged, via Nate Silver's Five Thirty Eight blog at the New York Times:
"...The most recent poll was conducted by Civitas Institute, a conservative think tank whose poll results have generally shown little partisan bias in the past. That survey polled Democratic and Republican primary voters separately, but projected that the measure would win by 16 percentage points when it combined the results.
An April poll by Public Policy Polling, which conducts polling for Democratic clients but whose surveys also have a track record of nonpartisanship, had the measure prevailing by 14 points.
Both the Civitas and Public Policy Polling surveys directly read the text of the amendment to the voters they were polling. Conversely, some polls that described what the amendment would do but did not read the ballot language have sometimes showed it failing, often by clear margins."
Vice Pres. Biden Stops Short of Gay Marriage Pledge
May 7, 2012 at 9:00 am
A trial balloon in advance of President Obama changing his public position on marriage? Or an attempt by the administration to placate pro-SSM activists and donors?
Vice President Joe Biden stopped short on Sunday of pledging to legalize gay marriage should President Obama win a second term.
“That’s what I believe. I am vice president of the United States of America, the president sets the policy,” he said on NBC's Meet the Press. “I am absolutely comfortable with men marrying men, women marrying women.”
The White House told reporters on Sunday that that Biden's comments are not a shift from the administration's official policy. But gay rights groups, like the Human Rights Campaign, seized on the opportunity to call on President Obama to take decisive action to support same-sex marriage.
"We are encouraged by Vice President Biden's comments, who rightly articulated that loving and committed gay and lesbian couples should be treated equally," HRC President Joe Solmonese said in a statement. "Now is the time for President Obama to speak out for full marriage equality for same-sex couples." -- National Journal
New Yorker Magazine Predicts Gay Rights Victory in North Carolina
May 7, 2012 at 8:00 am
The New Yorker magazine's News Desk blog:
"...Amendment 1 has drawn scant attention outside of North Carolina so far, but it is poised to be a bellwether fight in the gay civil-rights movement. A defeat for the amendment is looking more and more possible as the Coalition’s momentum grows and the conversation expands."
NPR: Black Christians Struggle Over NC Marriage Amendment
May 7, 2012 at 7:00 am
North Carolina's African-American voters could be crucial in Tuesday's vote over the proposed constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage and civil unions. Blacks make up a little more than 20 percent of the state's population, and some polls show they strongly favor a ban.
While activists on both sides make phone calls and put up yard signs, many African-Americans are struggling with the issue inside their churches and homes.
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