US Rep. Michael Michaud Comes Out

Via Chris Geidner on Buzzfeed:

Rep. Mike Michaud, a Maine Democrat, told residents of the state he is hoping to govern that he is gay on Monday in op-eds running in newspapers across the state. Running for governor in 2014, Michaud told residents he “wasn’t surprised to learn about the whisper campaigns, insinuations and push-polls some of the people opposed to [his] candidacy have been using to raise questions about [his] personal life.” Then, he got specific, writing, “They want people to question whether I am gay.” And, he responded, “Allow me to save them the trouble with a simple, honest answer: ‘Yes I am. But why should it matter?’ That may seem like a big announcement to some people. For me, it’s just a part of who I am, as much as being a third-generation mill worker or a lifelong Mainer. One thing I do know is that it has nothing to do with my ability to lead the state of Maine.”

Read Michaud's full essay here.

GOP Rep. Tom Price (GA) To Introduce Bill To Prohibit Lame-Duck House Session

Today Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) plans to introduce a resolution demanding that the House of Representatives suspend all business in between election day and the day in January 2011 when Congress is rightfully returned to the God-fearing hands of the Republican Party. Because the Marxist/Socialist/Communist Democrats plan to go crazy during the lame-duck session.

Leftists do not think ObamaCare’s unconstitutional mandate to buy insurance went far enough. They do not think the failed $862 billion stimulus created a large enough deficit. They do not think Democrats have done enough to “change” America into an economically and militarily weak cradle-to-grave welfare state. They want more – and Senator Reid and Speaker Pelosi are planning to give it to them in a lame duck session of Congress. Of course, most Americans have had enough. And more Democrats are beginning to realize that their agenda is incredibly unpopular. They know the American people’s dissatisfaction could cost them control of one or both chambers of Congress next year. And they know if that were to happen, a lame duck session would be their last chance to defy the will of the public and enact the remaining items on the liberal wish list.

HuffPo blogger Sam Stein calls Price's plan "mere Kabuki theater" because Pelosi will, of course, rule his resolution to be out of order. But hey, it'll play well in Teabagistan.

Today In Crazy Teabaggers

Photo Of The Day - Rep. Aaron Schock

This photo of Rep. Aaron Schock (R-IL) at a White House picnic has been flying around the net for the last 24 hours. Rep. Schock would like to remind you that he is totally straight. For realz!

RELATED: Check out Rep. Abs in his bathing suit.

FLORIDA: Conservative GOP Transgender Woman Running For Congress

Donna Milo, 48, a conservative Republican transgender Cuban-American from Miami, has declared her candidacy for Congress.

"I'm an American. I make my way on the basis of ability. My triumphs are based on my abilities, not on a label or a crutch,'' said Milo, a Miami Planning Advisory Board member running to replace U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Weston, one of the House's most liberal Democrats. Milo, 48, will speak Monday night at Fort Lauderdale City Hall, a guest at the monthly meeting of the Sunshine Republicans club, a conservative group of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender South Floridians. "Donna is a very unique individual,'' Sunshine Republicans President Benjamin Lewis said. "She brings a story with her candidacy. The story is of overcoming obstacles and desires to become the person she has wanted to be."

Milo, who transitioned ten years ago, is a licensed pilot, member of the NRA, and the owner of boat fabrication business. She is divorced with two grown children. While Cuban-Americans are one of the few minority groups that traditionally vote Republican, it will be interesting to see if they will back a transgender candidate, regardless of her conservative positions.

Donna Milo's campaign site is here. On her issues page, she states opposition to "socialist healthcare reform," over taxation, and government regulation of industry. Her GOP primary is August 24th.

16 Senate Dems Uncommitted On ENDA

The long overdue vote on ENDA does appear to be coming, but support is lacking in the Senate where 16 Democrats have not signed on as co-sponsors. DC Agenda reports:

As of this week, there were 45 Senate co-sponsors of ENDA, along with chief sponsor Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), bringing the total committed votes to 46. Of the 46, 42 are Democrats and two are independents. Maine senators Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins are the only Senate Republicans that have signed on as co-sponsors. Thirty-nine Republican senators have declined to co-sponsor the bill compared to the 16 Democrats who chose not to become a co-sponsor. Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) signed on as a co-sponsor on March 10, reducing the number of uncommitted Democrats from 17 to 16. For the first of a series of reports on the Democratic senators uncommitted on ENDA, DC Agenda contacted experts and activists in the states that five of those senators represent, seeking to assess how they would vote if the measure reaches the Senate floor sometime this year. The five senators include Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), Thomas Carper (D-Del.), Evan Bayh (D-Ind.), and Clare McCaskill (D-Mo.). Spokespeople for the five did not return calls this week seeking to determine their position on ENDA.

Things look better in the House, where 199 reps (of the needed 216) have signed on as co-sponsors. In 2007 a trans-exclusive version of ENDA passed easily in the House with 35 Republicans on board, but was never voted upon by the Senate. The current version of the bill IS trans-inclusive.

ACTION: Call your Congressional representatives TODAY and request their support on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. In the Senate, the bill is S.1584. (Direct phone numbers here.) In the House, it's HR 3017. (Direct phone numbers here.) The main Congressional switchboard number: 202.224.3121.

Openly Gay NY Assemblyman Danny O'Donnell Considering Run For Congress

Openly gay NY Assemblyman Danny O'Donnell, who is widely credited with his chamber's multiple approvals of same-sex marriage, is considering a run for the seat of beleaguered Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY). Today the 20-term Rangel resigned as chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee over allegations of ethics violations. Via Elizabeth Benjamin at NY Daily News:

If elected, O'Donnell would be the first openly gay member of the state's congressional delegation. O'Donnell noted all but one ED of his district is located within Rangel's district and pointed out that he has lived on the same block for more than 20 years. He also has a connection north of his district, which ends at 125th Street, having served on Community Board 9 for seven years prior to his election to the Assembly in 2002. I asked O'Donnell how long he has been considering a run for Congress. He replied that he gave some hard thought to his future when he was interviewed by Gov. David Paterson last year for the US Senate seat Hillary Clinton was vacating.

"I like legislating," O'Donnell said. "I don't want to be public advocate. I don't want to be borough president...I like being a legislator, so it would be a great honor to be a member of the congressional delegation."

"...If you told me when I got here in 2003 that I would be interviewing for a US Senate seat I would have told you to take your medication and call me in the morning," the assemblyman continued. "But the world has changed."

I asked O'Donnell if he thought the fact that the composition of the district and the fact that the seat has been considered a "black seat" would pose a problem for him. He noted that the composition of his AD "almost mirrors" that of Rangel's district, and he performed well across all voting blocs in 2002.

As longtime readers of the blog know, I am a HUGE fan of Danny O'Donnell. It would be a shame to lose his voice in the state Assembly with marriage equality still in play, but his years of work there on the issue have probably safely secured its passage again on future votes. We don't know where this Rangel mess is headed, but I like the idea of Danny O'Donnell in the wings. I like it a LOT.

Rep. Eric Massa (D-NY) To Retire Amid Male Sexual Harassment Rumors

First term Rep. Eric Massa (D-NY) will not seek a second term in 2010. Although Massa cites a recent cancer diagnosis as part of the reason for his retirement, as yet unsubstantiated rumors in the U.S. House are flying that opposite-married Massa is being investigated by the Ethics Committee for sexually harassing a male staffer.

Massa, whose departure endangers Democrats’ hold on a competitive seat, told POLITICO Wednesday afternoon that no one has brought allegations of misconduct to him. Asked about the sexual harassment allegations, Massa said: "When someone makes a decision to leave Congress, everybody says everything. I have health issues. I'll talk about it [later].” Massa recently suffered from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and he has said that his experience with cancer drove his interest in running for office so he could help reform the health care system. A 20-year Navy veteran, Massa was elected to office last November. He serves on the Agriculture, Armed Services and Homeland Security committees. Massa is scheduled to hold a conference call at 3:30 this afternoon to announce his decision, which came as a complete surprise to several of his freshman Democratic colleagues in the New York delegation. Massa has played a gadfly-like role in the House, calling for a single-payer health care system at a conference of liberal activists last year despite representing a Republican-leaning district. He was one of 39 House Democrats to vote against health care legislation; he said it didn’t do enough to control costs.

Massa has made a lot of noise in his one term. Massa, Paterson, Rangel...who's the next New York Democrat to self-implode? This all sucks.

(Tipped by JMG reader Rob)

Fireworks At Obama Q&A With House GOP

The president met with House GOP members today for an extended question and answer session that we're hearing got quite hot and heavy. I haven't gotten a chance to watch much of it yet, but here's the entire meeting.

In a session that resembled the British custom where a prime minister responds to questions in Parliament, Mr. Obama took questions from House Republicans, who pressed him on why he had disregarded their ideas and instead advanced what they called big government solutions rather than more surgical alternatives. Mr. Obama replied that he did consider many of the suggestions they had made over the past year and incorporated some of them into his initiatives but found others unworkable or simply political posturing. Rejecting the notion that he had pushed a “Bolshevik plot” on America, he complained that Republicans had caricatured him as a radical, making it harder to then sit down and compromise. The encounter at a Baltimore hotel was unlike any of Mr. Obama’s presidency. While he met with the Republican caucus once before and occasionally invites Republican leaders to the White House, they have never opened their dialogue to the public so it could be broadcast live on national television.

Pelosi: I Have The Health Care Votes

2010 Census To Bring U.S. House Changes

The coming 2010 Census will bring the usual end-of-decade re-allocation of seats in the U.S. House. According to what is known about the decade's population trends right now, here's how the changes are expected to break down.

Although a decades-old population shift favoring Sun Belt states slowed this year, the South continues to seize political power once held by the Northeast and Midwest, Census Bureau estimates released Wednesday show. Eight states, including six in the South and Southwest, would gain seats in the House of Representatives if apportionment were done today rather than after the 2010 Census, according to an analysis by the non-partisan Election Data Services. Texas would be the biggest winner, adding three seats. In line to add a seat: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah and Washington. Ohio would lose two seats, and Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania would each lose one.

The Census will release its figures in early 2011. The people elected in the 2010 mid-terms are the ones who'll be redrawing the new districts.

Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC): The GOP Passed The Civil Rights Act

Somebody really really doesn't know her history. Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-CA) gets up to set her straight. Good stuff.

House Committee Approves Bill Granting Partner Benefits To Federal Employees

Yesterday the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted 23-12 to approve Rep. Tammy Baldwin's bill granting benefits for the partners of federal employees.

The bill is now likely to move to a full House floor vote, which many anticipate could take place before the end of the year. “Last I talked to the majority leader who sets the floor schedule, he was hopeful that it could get fairly prompt attention by the full House,” said out congresswoman Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, who is the lead sponsor of the bill in the House. Debate over the bill split along party lines with Democrats emphasizing the concepts of fairness and equality and Republicans objecting to the legislation on the basis that it would begin to redefine marriage or would create special rights for LGBT people.

Get ready for the right to mobilize against the full House vote.

About That Renegade Republican....

After his lone GOP "yes" vote on the U.S. House's health care reform bill helped its approval by only a two vote margin yesterday, right wing sites such as Free Republic and others have already launched a campaign against Rep. Joseph Cao (R-LA), branding him a "traitor" and calling for his deportation back to Vietnam, among other unrepeatable things. Cao emigrated to the United States at the age of eight with two siblings and an uncle, while his mother remained in Vietnam awaiting the release of his father from a North Vietnamese Army "reeducation camp."

After earning a master's degree at Fordham and a law degree from Loyola, Cao narrowly defeated Rep. William Jefferson in 2008 to become the first Republican congressional member from New Orleans' heavily Democratic 2nd District since 1891. Cao's win came after Jefferson was indicted on 16 felony counts of corruption. (Jefferson was found guilty on 11 of those counts in August.) Since taking office, Cao has consistently voted as one of the most moderate GOP reps in the House, becoming one of the four GOP co-sponsors of the recently-approved hate crimes act.

You can thank Rep. Cao for his support of health care reform here. In addition to the racist comments on conservative sites, his Facebook page is getting quite ugly, but appreciative progressives are also pouring in with messages of support.

U.S. House Passes Health Care Reform, GOP Calls Bill "Dead On Arrival" In Senate

Late last night the U.S. House narrowly approved its version of the health care reform bill by a vote of 220-215. Only one Republican, first termer Rep. Joseph Cao (LA), voted yes and 39 Democrats voted no. Roll call here.

A triumphant Speaker Nancy Pelosi likened the legislation to the passage of Social Security in 1935 and Medicare 30 years later. "Oh, what a night!" she proclaimed at the beginning of a press conference held after the vote. Obama issued a statement saying, "I look forward to signing it into law by the end of the year."

"It provides coverage for 96 percent of Americans. It offers everyone, regardless of health or income, the peace of mind that comes from knowing they will have access to affordable health care when they need it," said Rep. John Dingell, the 83-year-old Michigan lawmaker who has introduced national health insurance in every Congress since succeeding his father in 1955.

In the run-up to a final vote, conservatives from the two political parties joined forces to impose tough new restrictions on abortion coverage in insurance policies to be sold to many individuals and small groups. They prevailed on a roll call of 240-194. Ironically, that only solidified support for the legislation, clearing the way for conservative Democrats to vote for it.

The legislation would require most Americans to carry insurance and provide federal subsidies to those who otherwise could not afford it. Large companies would have to offer coverage to their employees. Both consumers and companies would be slapped with penalties if they defied the government's mandates.

President Obama is predicting that the Senate will pass the bill too, but Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) calls the House's bill "dead on arrival."

The president, in brief remarks from the Rose Garden in Washington, said the 220-215 House vote brings the country closer than it's ever been to a health care overhaul. Obama said the "historic" passage marked a "courageous vote" for many representatives, given the toxicity of the debate surrounding the bill, and predicted that lawmakers will view the eventual signing of the legislation as their "finest moment" in public service. "Now it falls on the United States Senate to take the baton and bring this effort to the finish line on behalf of the American people," Obama said. "And I'm absolutely confident that they will."

But key senators suggested such optimism could be premature, with Republicans enjoying stronger numbers in the Senate and important differences between the House and Senate legislation still unresolved. "The House bill is dead on arrival in the Senate," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said on CBS' "Face the Nation," noting that 39 Democrats "bailed out" on the bill Saturday night. "It was a bill written by liberals for liberals. ... So the House bill is a non-starter in the Senate." The Senate is not considering the House bill at the moment. The chamber has its own version of the legislation, which includes a different version of a government-backed health insurance plan, or "public option," and different funding mechanisms. But the differences between the two bills would have to be reconciled should the Senate approve its proposal.

Chris Matthews On NY-23

House Bill Would Cut Funding To States That Oppose LGBT Adoption

Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA) has introduced a bill that would restrict federal child welfare funding from any state that discriminates against LGBT people attempting to adopt.

Stark said in an interview that he introduced the legislation, H.R. 3827, in part because thousands of children each year "age out" of the child welfare system without finding homes. "We got 25,000 kids a year maturing out of the welfare system without permanent foster care or adoptive care, and the prospects of those children having a successful adult life are diminished greatly," he said. "These are kids who end up in the criminal justice system, or end up homeless."

States with explicit restrictions on adoption that the pending legislation would affect are Utah, Florida, Arkansas, Nebraska and Mississippi. Florida, for example, has a statute specifically prohibiting gays from adopting, and in Arkansas, voters last year approved Act 1, which prevents unmarried co-habitating couples, including same-sex partners, from adopting children. The legislation, Stark said, also would restrict funds for states where restrictions are put in place by agencies, individual social workers or judges, or where restrictions are part of the common law of the state. For states that don't comply with the law, federal officials could withhold from the states funds provided to them for child welfare services. The bill also calls for a Government Accountability Office study within five years to examine how states are complying with the new rules.

Stark rates the chances of his bill passing as "pretty good," but no hearing is yet planned. A spokesman for the HRC said they'll get behind the bill if it gains traction in Congress.

DOMA Repeal Fight: Act On Principles

A new website called ACT On Principles has been launched for us to continuously monitor in real time our House representative's position on the repeal of DOMA.

The LGBT community is often told that there is not the support needed to pass, or even introduce, certain pieces of legislation. Rarely are we told who needs to be persuaded to gain the needed support. When we are it is usually within days of the vote. And, because of technological constraints, this information is not up to date.

The Public Whip Count fundamentally changes the way advocacy on legislation works. It empowers the grassroots, and any citizen, to possess the knowledge necessary to organize and pressure our elected officials until enough votes are secured to introduce or pass legislation. It replaces secrecy with transparency and accountability and allows anyone who cares about LGBT equality to become an activist for full legal equality.

The most revolutionary aspect of our Public Whip Count tool is that it shares power with national organizations, the grassroots, elected officials and party leaders and allows real-time updates.

Bookmark this site. Note your rep's position and his/her direct phone number. This is doable.

Hate Crimes Bill On Verge Of Passage

Last night the House of Representatives voted down a GOP motion to strip the hate crimes act from the defense authorization bill to which it's attached. The vote was 234-178, virtually exactly along party lines. Tomorrow the House will see a final conference vote on the bill, after which the Senate will see a conference vote before the bill lands on Obama's desk. That may not happen until next week, but there appears to be a chance that President Obama may have something very nice in his pocket when he appears at the HRC dinner on Saturday. Below, Barney Frank defends attaching the hate crimes act to the DOD authorization.

Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX): Hate Crimes Act Is Holding Soldiers Hostage

Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) vehemently opposes the Matthew Shepard Act and says attaching it to a defense appropriations act is "holding soldiers hostage." He then go on to spout the usual lies that preachers will be dragged from the pulpits and charged with hate crimes for preaching against homosexuality.