Breaking: President Endorses DOMA Repeal Bill on Eve of Senate Hearings.

[ProSense]

Breaking: President Endorses DOMA Repeal Bill on Eve of Senate Hearings.

by jpmassar

In a letter to Courage Campaign members, Courage Campaign Chair Rick Jacobs just wrote:

This morning, Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to the President, called me referring to my conversation with the president to say that today was the day and that Jay Carney would announce the White House's support for the bill.

And if fact the AP reports:

Press secretary Jay Carney made the announcement Tuesday, a day before the first Senate hearing on a bill by California Sen. Dianne Feinstein that would overturn the Defense of Marriage Act.

The bill in question is S.598, The Respect For Marriage Act, which would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, prohibiting the Federal government from recognizing the legally valid marriages of same-sex couples.

This is an unusual occurrence. According to Adam Bink at Courage Campaign's Prop 8 trial Tracker:

the White House rarely, if ever, endorses legislation that hasn't passed a house of Congress -- and this one hasn't even passed committee yet.

So this is excellent news!

<...>

You can see if your Senators and/or Congressperson is a co-sponsor by looking at the Senator co-sponsor list and the House co-sponsor-list.

[stevenleser]

1. Excellent! K&R

[Ian David]

2. Well, at least ONE of my Senators is a co-sponsor. n/t

[Dawgs]

3. Good news.

:woohoo:

[ClarkUSA]

4. I love liberal President Barack Obama's unilateral policy decisions.

[JuniperLea]

6. Me too!

Now, what did he do wrong here... hmm...

[ClarkUSA]

7. lol

This was a surprise, so it'll take awhile for bile-filled PUMAs like Jane Hamster face to come up with some ridiculous angle to complain about. ;)

[JuniperLea]

14. Amazing isn't it?

They are psychic! Even the POTUS doesn't know some of the stuff they know!

:rofl:

[ClarkUSA]

19. Amazingly predictable, surely.

Fortunately, their opinions don't amount to a hill of beans in the real world because Obama supporters make up the huge majority of his supportive base.

:fistbump:

[Turbineguy]

5. Then the repubs

will have one more obstacle for use in their desire to destroy the US economy.

[CakeGrrl]

8. Fine. Then let their true motives be known.

[RaleighNCDUer]

9. Sorry about my persistent feelings of dread -

On 12/22/10, Obama signed the repeal of DADT. On 12/22/10, Obama extended the tax cuts for the super rich.

Repealing DOMA is all fine and well, as long as it is not just a bone for the left as he signs away SS.

[vaberella]

10. The extension won't be extended. And Obama is not and has not sold out SS. n/t

[DevonRex]

13. He bought DADT repeal with the extension of the tax cuts.

I don't like the tax cuts but on balance I think progress toward full equal rights is more important. We can still get rid of the tax cuts. But nobody can stop the momentum of glbt equality now that it has begun.

Did anyone think we'd get DADT repeal for free? No way we could change repubs' minds ideologically so we had to go for the only other thing they care about: money.

[polmaven]

23. On 12/22/10

President Obama protected the unemployed who would have lost benefits after on 26 weeks by agreeing to extend Bush tax cuts for 2 years. He is now attempting to close loopholes which many of the uber-rich enjoy, which, if successful, will increase the amount they pay in taxes.

[vaberella]

11. I have the weird feeling this is part of the debt ceiling deal. n/t

[karynnj]

20. Not likely -

Note that there are no Republican Senate sponsors - not Collins, not Snowe, not Centerfold. This would need 60 votes in the Senate. We have 53 Senators - and I doubt we could get some like Ben Nelson.

In addition, the only way that DADT was connected to the Obama compromise was that the Republicans had agreed en mass that NOTHING could be voted on until the tax stuff was done. There were already more than 60 Senators for it. (They blocked START for the same reason - even though the sponsors had over the 67 votes needed to ratify it. They couldn't get the 60 votes to vote on it.)

Here, I doubt we even have 50. It is not hard to create a list of 4 or more Democrats likely to vote for it. I doubt we have any Republicans. (Snowe and Brown are up for re-election. I think Snowe fears a primary challenge. I doubt the MA Republicans will primary Brown - as they likely know that getting someone else in would be really hard. )

[tallahasseedem]

12. Obama has sold us out once again!!!1!

Oh wait...

;)

[jefferson_dem]

15. Thank you, Mr. President.

Once again, making us proud! :patriot:

[Fearless]

16. Funny how it comes out the same day as news on the debt ceiling...

What with LGBTQ people among the more liberal in the party and the more liberal in the party being dissatisfied. :shrug: I'm still not voting for you if you cut social programs.

[jefferson_dem]

17. Whatever.

He's only doing shit to piss you off anyway. Thanks for playing.

[Fearless]

18. Well when he signs a deal to cut social programs I'll try really hard not to say I told you so.

[JuniperLea]

21. LOL!

:yourock:

[Palmer Eldritch]

25. Paranoid, Android?

[Name removed]

22. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Number23]

24. Rec'd. DOMA is and always has been disgusting.

[ProSense]

26. More reaction

here.

[Tx4obama]

27. Bravo President Obama. n/t

[jenmito]

28. Kick. Too late to rec., but I was going to start a similar thread. Glad you posted it already!

This is great news!

[ProSense]

29. Thanks. n/t