Here is some of the latest Updates to this story. At least it's a step in the right direction but NOT enough yet for me to take out my Obama T-shirt and wear again.
Watching how poorly democrats have handled this issue and health care debate continues to disappoint and frustrate me.

Monday, August 17, 2009

New Obama legal brief changes tune on DOMA, kind of

by John Aravosis (DC) on 8/17/2009 11:35:00 AM

I guess this is a step in the right direction. I don't want to fail to praise the administration for doing better, but to some degree the only reason this is "good" is because of how "bad" they did on the previous brief. In the end, they're still defending a discriminatory law that the president himself has called "abhorrent." The fact that they're doing it more tactfully is, I suppose, nice - and they are no longer using language that undercuts us on a variety of other civil rights, so that's good - but again, we're praising them for no longer doing things that they shouldn't have done in the first place. And in the end, they're still defending discrimination.

http://www.americablog.com/2009/08/new-obama-legal-brief-changes-tune-on.html

Author: Goombah
6/17/09

The first time I saw Obama appear on the national scene I was dazzle by his eloquence, charisma, and his inclusion of gay people in his speeches from the very beginning.
During the campaign when he spoke of change he brought a new sense of hope for my community and I truly believed this politician if elected would be different.
I've been a democrat my entire voting life and volunteered at the Obama headquarters during the campaign and I absolutely will NO longer put a check mark on ANY candidate that doesn't support equality. Period end of story.
The DOMA brief went way beyond what was necessary and used language that would NEVER be acceptable towards any other minority.
I knew Obama did NOT support Gay Marriage and I had no problem waiting for the Obama administration to build enough political capital before he tackled gay issues BUT I never expected this from his administration.
(Though looking back he did have several homophobes that worked on his campaign that had me question how comfortable he really was with Gays.)
This lame ass attempt with the memorandum giving some rights to gay partners is another slap in our face and only happened after high profile gay donors and supporters pulled out of a democratic fundraiser.
The feeble attempts to explain this mess away has only compounded the problem and now
I question if we will ever see any of the advances that was promised.
I still have hopes for this President and want him to succeed for the sake of our country but I won't sit passively in the back of the bus and be taken for granted by my President or the democratic party.

Has the President and the Democratic party turned their backs to the gay community?
Well maybe it's time for us to do the same.

Below are some links I thought were interesting as this anger continues to grow in the gay community.

Angry Gay Democrats Pull Support For DNC

June 19, 2009 11:38 AM

Posted by Prerana Swami

(CBS/AP)

The Obama administration's decision to file a controversial brief on behalf of the Defense Of Marriage Act appears to have been the last straw for many gay and lesbians who were once enthusiastic supporters of the administration as well as the Democratic party.

Politico reports that the National Stonewall Democrats is the latest group to pull out of a June 25 Democratic National Committee fundraiser because of the Obama administration’s defense of DOMA and lack of action on gay issues.

The group said is "incredibly disappointed" in the party for a variety of reasons, including a perceived lack of support.

"The DNC has traditionally provided materials for the many Pride parades and festivals around the country to help educate the LGBT community about why the Democratic Party is the Party for full LGBT equality," National Stonewall wrote in an e-mail, according to Politico. "This year, we were informed that we would not be receiving any materials or support for producing materials for the various nationwide Pride activities. These decisions were very disappointing."

The e-mail also cited the DOMA brief as a reason to pull out of the fundraiser.

"The members of the Board and our membership put our hopes, our dollars and our time into ensuring the election of Barack Obama because we believed that he supported us. To now have his Administration refer to our relationships in the same terms used by our long time enemies such as Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell and James Dobson hurts on so many levels," National Stonewall wrote.

The government's pro-DOMA stance has already prompted many other high profile gay rights supporters to boycott the fundraiser.

Among them, as Newsweek reported Wednesday, is Vermont Senate President Peter Shumlin. As an early Obama supporter and leader of the marriage equality bill in Vermont, Shumlin was expected to be an honored guest at the event.

"I am shocked and disappointed at the level of insensitivity that the Department of Justice has shown towards gay and lesbian couples and their families," Shumlin said in an e-mail to Newsweek. “My disappointment in this has led me to the regrettable decision not to be a participant in the DNC event."

Shumlin also said he believes that the Department of Justice and the government's action will not only alienate the LGBT community but perpetuate stereotypes and discrimination as well. He expressed hope that Mr. Obama will "actively support" marriage equality.

The recipient of the National Stonewall Democrats' e-mail, the DNC's Tom Petrillo, responded with a short statement encouraging a continued relationship between the two groups. Petrillo pointed to the fact that the DNC plans to support a Stonewall activity later this year.
http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/06/19/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry5097358.shtml

Stonewall Democrats Pull Support From LGBT Fund Raiser.

At the rate things are going, Vice President Joe Biden will be standing in a room surrounded by tables and talking to the paint. Some might joke that he does that anyway. However, this may be one of those cases where the real danger is in that actually happening. National Stonewall Democrats have pulled their sponsorship of the upcoming fund raiser headlined by Vice President Biden over a whole host of issues from funding for their activities to the recent Defense of Marriage Act brief. Ben Smith from Politico reported on this issue, including printing the email exchange concerning it.

When it comes to funding, one has to wonder if part of the problem is that the current head of the Democratic Party hails from one of the most homophobic and restrictive on gay rights states in the union- Virginia. What is more, even Governor Tim Kane is only part time when it comes to running the Democratic Party right now.

Money from the LGBTI community, also known as Pink Money, has been disproportionately heading towards the DNC over the years. Indeed, Governor Howard Dean of Vermont launched his 2004 Presidential bid using a substantial amount of money from the gays, lesbians and transpeople in the country. Indeed, the amount of money that the LGBTI community funneled into the Obama campaign likely tipped the scales in his battle to get the nomination. Yet, now, everything will be seen through the lens of this particular brief, and in light of President Obama’s lack of action on issues that many gays, lesbians and transpeople find important. For those who often state that President Obama has a lot to deal with right now, they forget that DOMA adds to the cost of living for gays and lesbians. They forget that Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell often means finding oneself out of a job in a weak economy.

Somewhere lost in the noise is the fact that these issues effect the economy. Many gays and lesbians pay far more for health care than they can necessarily afford simply because of DOMA. For many transpeople, the costs of transitioning are so great that they are unable to do it at more than a snail’s pace, often risking their own lives in order to transition without the massive expense of the medical bills. Somewhere, lost in the Administration, is that gays, lesbians and transpeople have a greater interest in the reforms that President Obama proposed than the average person because we hurt so much from the discrimination that exists. It is time that President Obama, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid realize that those Christian Conservatives out there are not going to follow along if we delay rights for the LGBTI community and it is time that they stand up to those groups. Any and all religious organization, church, or group that donates to any political cause should have their tax free status revoked. If they have the money to fund advertisements, they have money to pay taxes. If they allow petitions to be signed in their churches, then they should pay the same taxes as I would if I allowed others to sign petitions in my house or place of business. It is time to put this intrusion of religion into politics to bed and tell these groups that they have the money to spare since they are wasting it not feeding, clothing and helping the needy at a time when charitable donations are on the decline.

Stampp Corbin, President Obama’s Co-Chair for LGBT Issues during the campaign, will not be attending the fund raiser on the 25th of June either. He stated emphatically “You really are talking out of both sides of your mouth and my community knows it.” Mr. Corbin will be joining a long list of people who will not be attending the fund raiser including Peter Shumlin, who is expected to run for Governor of Vermont, Andy Towle (Towle Road), David Mixner and Pam Spaulding. The National Stonewall Democrats join the Human Rights Campaign in pulling support from this fund raiser.

http://lezgetreal.com/?p=15024&cpage=1

June 19, 2009

More LGBT Leaders Pull DNC Support

By Amita Parashar and Michelle Garcia

Two more LGBT leaders have pulled their support from next week's Democratic National Committee fund-raiser dinner in continuing fallout over a brief filed by the Obama administrationlast week in support of the Defense of Marriage Act.

Representatives from the National Stonewall Democrats and attorney Mary Bonauto (pictured) of Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders are the latest to have backed out of attending a June 25 fund-raiser with Vice President Joe Biden. Software mogul and philanthropist Bruce Bastian, activist blogger Andy Towle, longtime Democratic figure David Mixner, and a handful of others had previously pulled out of the $1,000-per-plate fund-raiser.

In an e-mail obtained by Politico.com, the Stonewall Democrats called the Obama administration's brief "incredibly hurtful." The group also cited an end to traditional party funding from the Democratic National Committee as a reason for backing out.

"Our membership put our hopes, our dollars, and our time into ensuring the election of Barack Obama because we believed that he supported us. To now have his administration refer to our relationships in the same terms used by our longtime enemies such as Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, and James Dobson hurts on so many levels," the Stonewall Democrats wrote.

GLAD attorney Mary Bonauto has also declined her invitation to the dinner. She called elements of the brief "startling," "silly, wrong, or offensive."

"Many states and our national government enforce existing antigay laws or simply fail to see discrimination against LGBT people as both personally devastating and a stain on our nation's commitment to equal justice under the law," Bonauto wrote in a post on Pam's House Blend.

Bonauto added that GLAD is prepared to defeat all arguments made in support of DOMA, and that the LGBT community is right to demand leadership from the Obama administration rather than accepting "arguments that reflect backward and unenlightened thinking."

Representatives Jared Polis and Barney Frank have not indicated whether they will refrain from attending the event. Frank called the DOJ's brief, a directive from the White House, a "big mistake." However, he also said the same thing about boycotting the fund-raiser. "I think it's a big mistake to deny money to the DNC," he said in the Boston Herald.

On Wednesday night's Rachel Maddow Show, Rep. Tammy Baldwin said she would be attending the fund-raiser.