Two United States Senators implicated in extramarital sexual activity have named themselves as co-sponsors of S. J. RES. 43, dubbed the Marriage Protection Amendment. If ratified, the bill would amend the United States Constitution to state that marriage "shall consist only of the union of a man and a woman."

Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID), who was arrested June 11, 2007 on charges of lewd conduct in a Minneapolis airport terminal, is co-sponsoring the amendment along with Sen. David Vitter (R-LA).

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Republicans Admit Mailing Campaign Literature Saying Liberals Will Ban the Bible

September 24, 2004

The Republican Party acknowledged yesterday sending mass mailings to residents of two states warning that "liberals" seek to ban the Bible. It said the mailings were part of its effort to mobilize religious voters for President Bush.

The mailings include images of the Bible labeled "banned" and of a gay marriage proposal labeled "allowed." A mailing to Arkansas residents warns: "This will be Arkansas if you don't vote." A similar mailing was sent to West Virginians.

A liberal religious group, the Interfaith Alliance, circulated a copy of the Arkansas mailing to reporters yesterday to publicize it. "What they are doing is despicable,'' said Don Parker, a spokesman for the alliance. "They are playing on people's fears and emotions."

Nunn would bring national security credentials to the ticket, having served as the longtime Armed Services Committee chairman. The former Georgia senator is a member of Obama's foreign policy advisory group.

But Nunn has not been in office for more than a decade so he is not well-known nationally. He is a conservative Democrat who supported school prayer and opposed gays in the military, while Obama tends to have a more liberal viewpoint. Nunn will turn 70 in September.

Responding to a caller who said, 'I had to explain to my young son why these two men were holding hands the other day,' Michael Savage stated, 'You've got to explain to the children ... why God told people this was wrong.' He went on to say, 'You have to explain this to them in this time of mental rape that's going on. The children's minds are being raped by the homosexual mafia, that's my position. They're raping our children's minds.'"

Obama definitely does not want Hillary on the ticket, and Hillary knows that. Moreover, Hillary does not want to be Obama's VP, because the VP has no power except for that which is explicitly granted by the President.

What does Hillary really want? She wants to be President, of course. Now she realizes her next shot might come in 2012. Hillary firmly believes Obama will lose this November, so her top priority is to NOT be blamed by any Democrats causing Obama's defeat.

But wait! Obama and Clinton both know that many, perhaps most, Democrats want the Obama-Clinton unity ticket to happen. So what can they do?

From Hillary's perspective, knowing it's not going to happen, she has two choices...

The first option: wait quietly for the Obama campaign to make it look as if Obama offered the number two slot to Hillary and she declined. That makes Hillary look like the villain, and if he loses to McCain (which is inevitable, in Hillary's mind), many in the party might blame Hillary for not doing all she could to help Obama win, an impression which could then cripple her chances of securing the nomination in 2012.

The second option: get in front of the story and spin it to her own advantage, which is what I believe she is doing now. She makes it clear to the media and the public, through surrogates, that she is willing to be the running mate (although she knows it's not true). Then, when the unity ticket does not happen, it looks as if Obama rejected her, and she can't be blamed for Obama's defeat.

From Obama's perspective, the choice is very risky. If he does not select Hillary for VP, many of her supporters might not forgive him. But if he DOES select her, many of HIS supporters might not forgive him. In any event, if the public impression is that Obama capitulated to the demands of Hillary and her supporters by placing her on his ticket, he will look weak and not very presidential.

I believe Obama has a better chance of winning if Hillary is NOT on the ticket. His ability to unify the party on his terms, without allowing himself to be bullied by the Clintons, is a key test of his leadership, and could persuade many swing voters that he possesses the strength and resolve to be commander-in-chief. After all, if he can't stand up to Hillary, how can he stand up to despots around the world?

Senator Sam Nunn removed two aides a decade ago for being gay, and gay rights groups are now contending that his action disqualifies him from a post in a Clinton Administration.

Mr. Nunn, the Georgia Democrat who is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has confirmed that he asked the two aides to leave because of their homosexuality.

So despite my sincere respect for many of the good things Sam Nunn has done, I also think it is important for those whispering about the possibility of putting Nunn in the VP slot on the Obama ticket -- or in Obama's cabinet -- to realize that this blog and many others will not stand for someone who still harbors long standing, institutionalized discriminatory views against gay men and women, particularly in the arena of national security when we should be applauding any who want to serve this country.

It's time for us to be asking Sam Nunn what his views on gays in the military now are -- and he should tell us.

Let's move to "Ask and Tell."

When Steve Clemons says he won't stand for something, people in DC pay attention. After all, Steve was the guy who sank the confirmation of UN Ambassador John Bolton.

Option A: Anger enough of her supporters leaving her in the same gutter he repeatedly put that bowling ball in and he's toast -- Don't bother to call the movers.

Option B: Pick her (or, recognize that 17 million+ voters picked her) and actually have a shot at winning.

In an interview with The Washington Post, Clinton supporter and Black Entertainment Television network founder Robert Johnson said Clinton has authorized him and others to persuade Barack Obama to pick her.

'She said if asked to do this, she must accept because she believes that it is in the best interest of the party that the party come together and win in November,' Johnson told the Post."

The ninth segment, titled "The Guilty Men", directly implicated Lyndon B. Johnson. Within days, Johnson's widow, Lady Bird Johnson, more of his surviving associates, ex-President Jimmy Carter, and the lone, living Warren Commission commissioner and ex-President Gerald R. Ford immediately complained to the History Channel. They subsequently threatened legal action against Arts & Entertainment Company, owner of the History Channel. "The Guilty Men" segment was completely withdrawn by the History Channel, that action resulting in considerable controversy.

She had an opportunity to soar and unite. She had a chance to surprise her party and the nation after the day-long denials about expecting any concession and send Obama off on the campaign trail of the general election with the best possible platform. I wrote before how she had a chance for her "Al Gore moment." And if she had done so, the whole country ALL would be talking today about how great she is and give her her due.

Instead she left her supporters empty, Obama's angry and party leaders trashing her. She said she was stepping back to think about her options. She is waiting to figure out how she would "use" her 18 million voters.

But not my vote. I will enthusiastically support Barack Obama's campaign. Because I am not a bargaining chip. I am a Democrat.

Rome, a 38-year-old businesswoman who has been quietly dating Crist since September, stepped farther into the spotlight when she accompanied her boyfriend to Republican John McCain's Arizona ranch Memorial Day weekend. That event was widely interpreted as a vetting of Crist and two other candidates for the vice presidential spot on the Republican ticket.

The rumors about Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and the Green Iguana just wouldn't go away. The story goes that the Florida governor frequented the Green Iguana, a bar in Tampa, back in the early 1990s when he was just starting his political career. He was less careful back then, people say, and during his partying at the Green Iguana, he was openly gay.

When I got Rick Calderoni, the bar's well-known owner, on the phone, I expected him to stonewall me about it.

He didn't.

Calderoni, who is gay, confirmed that Crist came into his bar quite often and that the two of them became friends.

Getting to the point, I asked him if he knew Crist to be gay.

"Yes," he answered bluntly. "I just wish he would come out and admit it. That would be a great thing if he did."