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Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton told the nation's leading gay rights group in an unpublicized speech that she wants a partnership with gays if elected president.
Clinton also said she opposes the "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding gays in the military that was instituted during her husband's presidency.
"I am proud to stand by your side," Clinton said in a keynote speech Friday to the Human Rights Campaign. Neither Clinton's campaign nor her Senate office made any announcement that she would be making the Friday address.
Asked twice at a Monday campaign stop in Iowa why she did not publicize her speech to the group, Clinton said: "You'll have to ask my campaign."
In the speech, Clinton joked that she shares the same initials as the group, and pledged to maintain the same close working relationship that last year helped defeat the federal amendment which would have banned same-sex marriage.
"I want you to know that this is exactly the kind of partnership we will have when I am president," Clinton told the group. "I want you to know that just as you always have an open door to my Senate office, you will always have an open door to the White House and together we can continue this journey."
Clinton's husband Bill Clinton was president when the Pentagon instituted the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, which says gays may serve in the military only if they keep their sexual orientation private. In 1999, as she prepared to run for the Senate from New York, Clinton publicly opposed that policy.
Previous to Bill Clinton's administration, gays were flatly forbidden from serving in the military.
Sen. Clinton said it would be safer for the nation if openly gay soldiers, sailors, Marines, and airmen could wear the uniform.
"This policy doesn't just hurt gays and lesbians, it hurts all our troops and this to me is a matter of national security and we're going to fix it," Clinton said.
Her chief rivals for the Democratic nomination, John Edwards and Barack Obama, also favor repealing the policy.
She also criticized the Bush administration for making political appeals based on gay rights issues, vowing that her presidency would mark "the end of leadership that has politicized the most personal and intimate issues."
Human Rights Campaign vice president David Smith said Clinton's comments were "very well received," though he added the group is not endorsing any candidate and does not anticipate making an endorsement "anytime soon."
Clinton spokesman Blake Zeff said Monday the candidate "affirmed her desire to have a strong partnership with the community as president," adding they were "delighted" the speech was available on the Internet.
Clinton aides said no announcement was made because the group's gathering is traditionally closed to the press. Video of the speech was posted on the group's Web site.
Smith said such annual board meetings have always been closed to the press, but it was the first time he could remember that a speech at such a meeting had been made public afterward.
"There's no contradiction," he said. "The event is always closed to the press and we wanted to make (the remarks) available for people to see."
Clinton spent Monday in Iowa, telling workers energy independence is critical to the country's future and similar to the U.S. fight against communism during the Cold War.
"Today we know that we have to move away from our dependence on foreign oil. Everyone says that," she said. "Our problem is figuring out how we would actually do it."
from The Associated Press
In a major new development confirming our theory that radical gay activists were behind the Mark Foley scandal, the mysterious source responsible for exposing Foley's behavior has been identified as an employee of the Human Rights Campaign. This is the radical homosexual organization that functions as an adjunct of the national Democratic Party.
Conservative bloggers discovered that the source, who operated stopsexualpredators.com, had used the Internet facilities of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) to post the Foley emails that found their way into the hands of Brian Ross of ABC news and led to the congressman's resignation. HRC issued a statement saying that when this information came to their attention, "We investigated the matter, determined that HRC resources had been inappropriately used, and let him go. No one at the Human Rights Campaign, other than this individual, had any knowledge of his activities."
One of the board members of the HRC is Jeff Trandahl, the former House clerk who has inside information about the scandal and has testified before the House Ethics Committee. During his "Republican" career on Capitol Hill, Trandahl had contributed financially to the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, a group supporting mostly Democrats for public office.
Citing a source in the case, ABC's The Blotter reported that Trandahl had identified Foley and Congressman Jim Kolbe (R-Ariz.) as being among a small number of "problem members" of Congress who "spent too much time socializing with pages, taking them to dinner or sporting events outside of official duties."
All of this means that there was inside information, available to radical gay activists allied with the Democratic Party, which could be used to create scandals for Republican gay members of Congress. Of course, the problem wouldn't have surfaced in the first place if Congressional Republican leaders had not been protecting homosexuals in their ranks. House leaders knew that Foley was a homosexual but permitted him to serve as a co-chair of the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children. In the case of Kolbe, who announced that he was a homosexual after being threatened with "outing" by a radical homosexual publication, House leaders still defended him.
Kolbe, who is retiring from Congress, is under investigation by the U.S. Attorney in Phoenix because of a 1996 camping trip he took with two male former pages, both of them 17-years-old. MSNBC reported that "One participant, who requested anonymity, said he was uncomfortable with the attention Kolbe paid to one of the former pages. He was 'creeped out by it,' he said, adding that there was a lot of 'fawning, petting and touching' on the teenager's arms, shoulders and back by Kolbe."
Kolbe's alleged corrupt activities go far beyond inappropriate relationships or contacts of a possible sexual nature with former pages. Associated Press reported that Kolbe was up for the job leading the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, even though he had helped determine its funding as chairman of a House Appropriations subcommittee. AP said, "The committee's bill, approved May 25, included $3.4 billion in global assistance to combat AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, including $445 million for the U.S. contribution to the Global Fund." This figure, advocated by Kolbe, was over twice the amount requested by the Bush Administration.
So Kolbe padded the bank account of an organization that considered hiring him as its executive director.
from Accuracy In Media / Cliff Kincaid
The Human Rights Campaign, in conjunction with Delivery Agent Inc., the leader in shopping enabled programming for television shows, motion pictures, sports, and music videos, announced today a one-of-a-kind auction to benefit the programs of the nation's largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights organization. The auction will feature the wardrobe worn by the stars of 2005's hit movie "Brokeback Mountain" -- the unforgettable Focus Features film directed by Academy Award winner Ang Lee.
The first outfit from the film will be offered in a live auction on Saturday, October 7th at the Human Rights Campaign's 10th Annual National Dinner held in Washington, D.C. The remainder of the wardrobe seen on the actors in the film will be available for bidding in an online auction October 13-20 on the new entertainment and e-commerce site http://www.seenon.com/. To learn more about the online auction please visit http://www.seenon.com/auction/
Focus Features and James Schamus, producer of "Brokeback Mountain," have donated wardrobe from the film to be auctioned off; all proceeds benefit the Human Rights Campaign.
"'Brokeback Mountain' was a truly epic film that inspired thousands of conversations about the lives of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans," said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese. "For the Human Rights Campaign to be the beneficiary of an auction featuring part of Hollywood history is remarkable. We are excited to be a part of this one-of- a-kind auction and thrilled that the money raised will continue to go towards promoting and securing equality for all Americans."
"To be able to offer such a groundbreaking entertainment property to a broader audience is truly a great opportunity. Today's expanded technologies and e-commerce platforms have opened the doors not only to enhance a consumer's experience to connect with the entertainment world, but also to raise money for worthy causes such as HRC," said Mike Fitzsimmons, CEO of Delivery Agent.
A letter of authenticity will be offered with each sale.
from Press Release
A record number of U.S. companies are trying to be gay-friendly, according to a survey released Tuesday showing a growing number offering benefits and protections to gay and lesbian employees and customers.
An unprecedented 138 major U.S. companies scored 100 percent in a Corporate Equality Index compiled by the Human Rights Campaign, a Washington-based gay rights advocacy group.
That number was up from 101 companies last year and was 10 times higher than the 13 companies with that score in 2002, said the campaign, which conducts research and education programs and lobbies Congress.
Top companies offer such benefits as medical coverage and family leave to same-sex partners, prohibit discrimination against transgender workers or advertise in ways that respect gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people, it said.
"More companies are not only implementing very comprehensive workplace policies that cover gay employees and their families but more companies are doing it faster and also seeking recognition for it," said Daryl Herrschaft, director of the group's workplace project.
Consistent high scorers since the group began the index in 2002 have been IBM Corp., Citigroup, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Levi Strauss & Co and Nike Inc., he said.
"I think corporations are responding to a basic American value that has served them well for hundreds of years, that does not change with the political winds," Herrschaft said. "That is giving everybody equal opportunity at work, and making them feel like valued employees is not only the right thing but it's also good for the bottom line."
Research shows gay and lesbian consumers spend some $641 billion a year, he said. Also, gays and lesbians are likely to pay attention to workplace policies, are brand-loyal and have higher amounts of disposable income, Herrschaft said.
The campaign looked at 1,520 companies from such lists as the Fortune 1000 and Standard & Poor's 500 and culled enough information to rank 446 on its index.
Three companies scored zero: Exxon Mobil Corp., Midwestern retailer Meijer Inc. and Plano, Texas-based Perot Systems technology consultants.
None offered minimal benefits or workplace protection for gay employees, the campaign said.
Representatives of Exxon Mobil, Meijer and Perot Systems did not return calls seeking comment.
from CNN Money
