Note: I wrote this on Monday morning, May 7, convinced of a loss. Probably 15 points, right? Doesn't matter. This I know to be true; that's why I wrote it. As of this morning, there are an estimated 150,000 married same-sex couples in the United States. They are not "civil-union"ed. They are not in a "domestic partnership". They are "married" … Read More
Amendment One Poised to Win
No change in polling over the weekend. It's likely to win only because people don't understand it, according to PPP: 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. Opponents … Read More
North Carolina Is Now Birther Central
ThinkProgress: North Carolina is apparently ground zero of the latest resurgence of the birther movement, as a number of Republican candidates in the state are expressing doubts about President Obama’s birthplace. ThinkProgress has previously noted that Richard Hudson, running for a congressional seat in the state’s 8th district, said Obama is “hiding something on his citizenship,” while the Charlotte Observer rescinded … Read More
State Senator’s Wife: Amendment One Is Needed Because The Caucasion Race Is Diminishing
Holy crap! I won't say much because the "state senator" works in the same law firm as me, but the gist is that the senator's wife…. oh, hell. Roll it, Think Progress: The wife of a prominent North Carolina state senatorand supporter of Amendment 1 — a proposed ballot initiative that would outlaw same-sex marriage, civil unions, and domestic partnerships in the state … Read More
As You Might Suspect, Amendment One Proponents Are Funded By Religious Right And Anit-Gay Groups
Jeremy Hooper points out that almost all of the top donors supporting North Carolina’s discriminatory Amendment One, which limits what relationships the state can recognize, are from radically conservative religiously-affiliated groups. It’s true that opponents of the measure have raised twice as much money, but it’s telling that they have raised four times as much money from individual donors. Over 70 percent of Vote FOR Marriage NC’s campaign fundraising … Read More
Amendment One Polls
The latest poll from PPP shows no movement from one week ago, meaning that FOR Amendment One is ahead of AGAINST Amendment One by 14 points: Opposition is rising slightly with Republicans, independents, and African Americans, from 17% to 21% with the GOP, from 43% to 46% with independents, and from 39% to 43% with black voters. Democrats on the … Read More
Amendment One Sign Wars
Like California's Proposition 8, the Amendment One measure in North Carolina would amend the state constitution to define marriage as being between one man and one woman — but it would also ban gay civil unions and domestic partnerships. On my way in to work, I count the number of AGAINST AMENDMENT ONE signs on peoples' lawns, compared to the … Read More
Bigotry On The Ballot
NYT editors weigh in on Amendment One: North Carolina already has a law barring same-sex marriage, but the state’s Republican-controlled Legislature is not satisfied. It devised a measure to enshrine this obvious discrimination in the State Constitution and placed it on the ballot of the state’s May 8 primary election — a test of tolerance versus bigotry that ought to … Read More
Enterprise In NYC
The retired space shuttle Enterprise did a buzz of NYC on its way to its final resting place. This made for some good photos today. Two of my faves: That said, I think this photo is a fake. How can you get the Statue of Liberty AND the Empire State building in one shot?
Yes On Amendment One Still Ahead, But Weaker
A new Public Policy Polling poll shows that support for North Carolina’s discriminatory Amendment One continues to fall, standing now at 54 percent down from 58 percent a month ago. Opposition is also at its highest at 40 percent, but many voters are still confused about just what the Amendment does, with 10 percent believing it actually legalizes same-sex marriage instead of banning all … Read More
Newt Gingrich Speaks Out For Amendment One
Transcript: Blah blah blah Saul Alinsky blah blah blah Preamble to the Declaration of Independence says the Creator hates gay people blah blah blah guns are great for defending the home blah blah blah blah blah Marriage between a man and a woman is at the heart of our civilization. It’s a belief that is now under attack, yet it’s … Read More
Obama Needs More Backbone
Obama is in North Carolina again today. He's speaking at UNC to talk about college loans…. But President Obama is not expected to touch the subject when he appears in Chapel Hill on Tuesday — even though it is roiling the electorate there…. His delicate sidestep of Amendment One, a ballot initiative to be decided May 8 that would recognize marriage between a man … Read More
The Future Is Here, Rose
From today's Letters To The Editor of the Winston-Salem Journal (emphasis added): The civil-rights argument for gay marriage is a smokescreen ("Same-sex marriage a civil-rights issue, Barber says," April 18). Gay marriage has nothing whatsoever to do with civil rights. Does anyone really believe if the "marriage amendment" is defeated on May 8, we will not soon see gay marriage … Read More