DOMA: Did Obama Make A Big Mistake?

First off, a few things.

1) I was not pissed off about the CA State Court decision regarding Prop 8. According to the California state constitution, you can petition an amendment, get the required number of signatures to put said amendment on the ballot, and then open it to an election. This is what the supporters of Prop 8 did and what they did was legal. Was it right? No, but that's not what the court was ruling: they ruled that it was legal. I expected it. I'm not sure why other gays and gay supporters didn't.

2) I am not expecting President Obama to support or even legislate gay marriage. He said he was against it in the primaries and throughout the election. I'm not sure why other gays and gay supporters think that he was for it when he clearly stated that he was against it.

3) Given #2 as well as the fact that no alternative has been suggested by Congress, I expected him to uphold DOMA.

Those three things said, I am surprised that the brief they used to uphold DOMA was so inflammatory. The brief reads like it was written by Jerry Falwell. Gays cost the federal government too much money? Gays can enter into a sham marriage with someone of the opposite sex just to get the benefits? Can anyone read this thing with a straight face? (no pun intended).

The brief bases all of its arguments on a court decision back in 1971, in which it was ruled that gays did not have the right to marry each other. Social conservatives have used this ruling over and over again to justify their position. The problem is that the ruling took place over 40 years ago and the arguments that were made then are not the same arguments made in 2009. The brief should have taken into account present day arguments: it did not.

I'd have thought Obama was a bit smarter than this, but apparently I was wrong. If he was going to uphold DOMA, he should have used a less inflammatory (and might I add, dated) brief. So we've got two possibilities here:

1) It was an after thought. The administration realized that they would have to issue a brief, didn't take the time to draft one, and then used a holdover brief from the Bush Administration without even doing a spot check. Which shows that Obama doesn't hate U.S. homosexual citizens, he just doesn't care.

or 2) The administration read the brief and approved it.

Neither one of these scenarios bodes well for the gay rights movement in the United States.

Proof of this is found in another one of the brief's arguments, in which it states that the federal government has no obligation to recognize the rights granted by the state. So theoretically, we could have 45 states allowing legal same sex marriages but the federal government has no right to recognize them. Considering the recent decisions of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Iowa, this part of the brief is the most damaging (I think). It's setting up the situation where gays and lesbians are equal on a state level, but not on a federal level. Meaning: expect fair treatment from the state but not from the White House. Put more bluntly: the White House doesn't care what your state rules, it's still going to discriminate against you.

Not surprising to learn that this brief was drafted by a Bush appointee. President Obama has claimed that he would not use executive power to live in a vacuum like President Bush, but this brief essentially says that, at least on the issue of gay rights, he will follow Bush's lead.

What's worse is that this brief will be used as fresh ammo from all social conservatives and anti-gay marriage groups. "See? Even Obama doesn't want you to marry." Basically, our President threw gays and lesbians to the wolves. Despite the victories in New England and the heartland, we just got handed a grenade.

So does Obama deserve our anger? This time, oh yes...yes indeed.

Dear President Obama

Unlike the letter to Miss California, I actually sent this one:

Mr. President, I first would like to say that I know your job isn't easy. Pleasing 250 million people is not a pleasant task. But I'm just curious as to the silence concerning the historic actions of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Iowa in regards to gay rights and gay marriage. I find it odd that you wouldn't even acknowledge these acts, especially given your campaign promises.

I know little of politics and I understand if certain promises are pushed aside, but Mr. President, I'm asking for an acknowledgment that what these states did was Just and American. That homosexual citizens matter enough to be spoken of. I live in TN, the state where 82% of the population believed I shouldn't ever be married or have a civil union, because my long-term relationship would be less than valuable to society. My family doesn’t even ask about my relationships, as if I were asexual, whereas they obsess over my brother’s (heterosexual) love life. At 25 years old, I wonder if I'll ever be considered a citizen and person of value instead of a dirty little secret.

I consider myself to be a good American, Mr. President. I'm currently working towards my MBA at Belmont University. My main goal is to fix an entertainment industry that, like our country, is falling apart. I pay my taxes, I vote, I educate myself on the issues and world events, I am kind to my neighbors, I work hard and I play fair. And yet, I have people telling me everyday through their actions that I don't matter. Whether it's talk shows, radio programs, blogs, newsprint, or even comments in a Nashville bar. And your silence is telling me, once again, that because of who I am, who I was born to be, who I was made to love, that I don't matter.

So I ask you, Mr. President, do I matter? Or am I just a dirty little secret?

Sincerely,

Chris

Why is there still Don't Ask, Don't Tell?

Dear President Obama,

I mean this with all respect, because I do respect you. However, would you please man up and repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell? Or do you want to idiotically lose more servicemen and servicewomen who are working for our country and our intelligence agencies? Especially Arab linguists, because you know, what with our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, we *certainly* wouldn't need them....don't be a bush..be a light. Like you promised you would be. Repeal DADT.

Link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/aaron-belkin/obama-to-fire-his-first-g_b_199070.html

What we lost 8 years ago.....

While there has been an overwhelming bout of hysteria concerning Obama taking everyone's wealth away (and yet, I don't see a shortage of people with iPods so everyone's bank account must have remained intact during the first 100 days), let us not forget what former President Bush took away from us....a little thing called DUE PROCESS.

Because of the Patriot Act, a 16 year old boy is in jail and will probably remain so because there are no such things as trials or appeals once the government calls you a terrorist. I repeat, under the Patriot Act, an FBI or CIA agent only has to label you a terrorist and you are no longer a United States citizen--a citizen with a right to a fair trial, a right to a proper defense, a right to an appeal. This 16 year old, barring an act of God, will probably remain in jail for the rest of his life for doing absolutely nothing.

I would also like to point out, to those of you who think this won't happen to you because you're not Muslim and you don't have a darker skin pigment, this kid is white and is not a Muslim. Funny how everyone is screaming about Obama taking their rights away (oh my god, he's gonna take my gun and my inflated bonus away! Marxist!!!) when they've failed to realize, Bush already did that. But nobody seemed to notice because they got overpaid and fat. Me? I'd rather have freedom and protection.

And I don't know about you, but I'd rather pay higher taxes than go to jail because some asshole hacked into my IP address. Just sayin'....

link: http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/5049867

Now...President Obama...repeal this under-handed, ham-fisted, Orwellian piece of legislation and STAT!