Menendez Endorses Marriage Equality, DOMA Repeal Bill

New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez endorsed marriage for same-sex couples in an op-ed that ran in the Star-Ledger on Sunday, Dec. 18.

“This comes down to an issue of fundamental fairness,” he wrote. “For me, this comes down to the principles I learned as the child of immigrants and that I cherish as an American: that we believe in equality for all people under the law.”

Menendez, who voted for the federal Defense of Marriage Act in 1996, is the 32nd Senate sponsor of a bill that would repeal the Clinton-era law.

“Across our country, the attitudes of millions of Americans have changed on this issue and several states have acted to guarantee the freedom to marry to same-sex couples whose love for each other and life commitment to one another is no different from other couples,” he wrote. “These gay men and gay women defend our streets and our citizens as firefighters and police officers; they are small-business people who create jobs; they are teachers who prepare our children to compete in the future. And they are soldiers, Marines and sailors who have put their lives on the line for our country, fighting to protect our freedoms and to combat terrorists who threaten to attack us again.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee last month voted 10-8 to advance the DOMA repeal bill. A Human Rights Campaign and Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research poll found that 51 percent of respondents oppose the Clinton-era law, but it remains unlikely that the DOMA repeal bill will pass during the current Congress.

Senate Judiciary Committee Advances DOMA Repeal Bill

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 10-8 on Thursday, Nov. 10, to advance a bill that would repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act.

"President Obama applauds today’s vote by the Senate Judiciary Committee to approve the Respect for Marriage Act, which would provide a legislative repeal of the so-called “Defense of Marriage Act.” said a White House spokesperson. "The president has long believed that DOMA is discriminatory and has called for its repeal. We should all work towards taking this law off the books. The federal government should not deny gay and lesbian couples the same rights and legal protections afforded to straight couples."

Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, also applauded the committee's vote.

“Today’s vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee puts us one step closer to ending federal marriage discrimination,” he said. “We thank the members of the Judiciary Committee who stood up for LGBT families and particularly thank Chairman Leahy and Senator Feinstein for their leadership in fighting this unjust law.”

Senate Committee Considers DOMA Repeal Bill

The Senate Judiciary Committee will consider a bill on Thursday, Nov. 3, that would repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act.

New York Congressman Jerrold Nadler introduced the measure in the House in March; while Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) introduced a companion DOMA repeal measure in the Senate.

“Marriage is the true foundation for strong families," said Gillibrand. "Every loving, committed couple deserves the basic human right to get married, start a family, and have access to all the same rights and privileges that my husband and I enjoy. No politician should stand in the way of this fact."

The White House announced earlier this year that it will no longer defend DOMA in federal court. The committee held a hearing on the Clinton-era law in July, but the mark-up comes a week after eight current and retired gay servicemembers filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of DOMA in a federal court in Boston.

“Today is another step toward restoration of the traditional practice of having the federal government respect marriages lawfully celebrated by the states – and eliminating the gay exception that unfairly denies that equal treatment to loving and committed couples who have gotten legally married,” said Evan Wolfson, founder and president of Freedom to Marry. “As the Senate Judiciary Committee considers this bill, we urge members to take into account the real harms families face because of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, and the burdens this departure from the usual way the federal government honors marriages imposes on businesses, employers, and others dealing with married couples.”

Gay Servicemembers Challenge DOMA in Federal Court

A group of gay and lesbian servicemembers filed a lawsuit challenging the federal Defense of Marriage Act in federal court in Boston on Thursday, Oct. 27.

The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network and Chadbourne and Parke held a press conference with the six active duty servicemembers and two veterans at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The plaintiffs argue that DOMA forces the military to deny their spouses access to bases, burial rights at national cemeteries and other benefits that heterosexual servicemembers' spouses automatically receive.

"The case we are bringing today is about one thing, plain and simple: It’s about justice for gay and lesbian servicemembers and their families," said Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network. "These couples are in long-term, committed and legally recognized marriages and the military shouldn’t be forced to turn their back on them because the federal government refuses to recognize their families."

The repeal of the Pentagon's ban on openly gay and lesbian servicemembers became official on Sept. 20.

The Obama administration announced earlier this year that it would no longer defend DOMA in federal court, but House Republicans continue to back the Clinton-era law. The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to begin debate on a DOMA repeal bill on Nov. 3.

Illinois Congressmembers to Hold DOMA Hearing in Chicago

Three Illinois congressmembers are scheduled to hold a hearing at Chicago City Hall on Friday, Oct. 7, on the impact of the federal Defense of Marriage Act on same-sex couples.

Congressmen Mike Quigley and Luis V. Gutierrez and Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky are expected to hear testimony from four gay and lesbian couples and two legal experts. The hearing will take place a week after House Republicans tripled the cap on the amount of money a private lawyer can receive for defending DOMA. The Obama administration announced in February that it would no longer defend the Clinton-era statute in federal court.

The Senate Judiciary Committee held its own hearing on DOMA in July.

House Republicans Triple DOMA Defense Cost Cap

Democrats blasted House Republican leaders on Tuesday, Oct. 4, for tripling the cap on the amount of taxpayer money a private lawyer they hire to defend the federal Defense of Marriage Act can receive.

Paul Clement would not have been paid more than $500,000 for defending DOMA under the original contract into which House Speaker John Boehner and other Republican leaders had entered. The cap has now been raised to $1.5 million.

“News of the increased payments to DOMA attorneys reached me today, ironically, during a Republican-chaired hearing on a Balanced Budget Amendment, in which Republicans were addressing the apparent need to cut Social Security benefits and programs for the poor,” said New York Congressman Jerrold Nadler. “Clearly, discriminating against LGBT Americans is a greater priority for them than providing for the welfare of seniors or children.”

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders joined LGBT rights groups that blasted the increase as hypocritical.

“There seems to be no limit to how much taxpayer money the House Republican leadership is willing to spend to keep this discriminatory law on the books,” said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese. “At a time when budgeting is the watchword in Washington, Americans will be rightly aghast at this boondoggle for right-wing lawyers.”

Is Obama's DOMA announcement a game changer?

Is the Obama administration's decision to no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court a game changer?

Hours after the White House made its announcement, Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie signed his state's civil unions bill into law. The Maryland State Senate is poised to vote on a marriage equality bill later today. Rhode Island lawmakers continue to debate a similar measure, while Republican legislators in New Hampshire have introduced two bills that would repeal marriage for gays and lesbians in the Granite State.

Obama's announcement certainly amounts to a game changer in the battle to secure marriage for same-sex couples. As I blogged yesterday, however, the fight for marriage equality in the United States is far from over.

Boy in Bushwick appears on "The Brian Lehrer Show" to discuss the administration's DOMA decision and its implications for same-sex couples.

Obama administration will no longer defend DOMA

LGBT organizations are obviously applauding the Obama administration's announcement it will no longer defend a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act, but it is important to note same-sex couples in New York and 44 other states continue to wait for the opportunity to legally tie the knot.

Maryland lawmakers are poised to pass a marriage bill by the end of this week, while New Hampshire Republicans have introduced two measures that seek to repeal nuptials for gays and lesbians in the Granite State. Obama's announcement is a very welcome development. The struggle for marriage equality in the United States, however, is far from over.

GLAD challenges Department of Justice's motion to dismiss DOMA lawsuit

The Gay & Lesbian Advocates and Defenders announced earlier this afternoon it has filed motions in a federal court in Boston to challenge the Department of Justice's move to dismiss a lawsuit that challenges a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act.

Attorneys Gary Buseck and Mary Bonauto discussed Gill vs. Office of Personnel Management on an earlier call with journalists.

"While the government has rightly abandoned the reasons Congress relied on in passing DOMA in 1996, it now seeks to dismiss ou case by arguing that DOMA "maintains the status quo," Bonauto said. "The reality is that DOMA itself radically changed the status quo by which the federal government recognized and accepted state determinations of who is married. There is no valid excuse for the federal discrimination imposed by DOMA and this can be resolved now and without a trial.”

GLAD, which filed suit in March, also sought a final decision in the case.

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley filed a second complaint in July. And New York Congressman Jerrold Nadler introduced a bill in late September that seeks to repeal the law former President Bill Clinton signed in 1996.

The Department of Justice has until Dec. 4 to respond to GLAD's motion.