While many of us are active and contact our representatives in congress, many (that I know personally) are not politically active, while the conservative have the organization of their churches and right wing organizations. Voting for those who oppose us is self defeating, so no matter what party, don’t support anyone who is against equality, but don’t fail to support anyone who is. We need more, not less. And we need to mobilize those of us who don’t do anything to take action and contact your representatives and Obama. Remember, they are hearing from the opposition, so we must make our voices heard as well.

Ever since the Dems included a gay rights plank in their platform in 1972 or 1976, gay people have been giving, giving and giving money to the Democratic Party.

On the FEDERAL LEVEL, what exactly has changed since then??? As a gay man who came out in 1969, a very good year, I can’t think of ONE Federal gay specific action that has changed my gay life or even had any significant effect on it.

We have had Jimmy Carter with a Democratic Congress, we’ve had Bill (no balls) Clinton with a Democratic Congress for two years. Oh, ya, then there is that fucking traitor Democratic GA Senator Sam Nunn and he is still a traitor.

I‘m 63 years old and you wonder why I‘m PISSED at apologists like you? By the way, that sausage story is about as old as I am. The President and the PARTY push legislation. We, as gay Democrats, should not have to persuade our own party.

When you look at it from the point of view of us having been locked out of federal progress since the Republicans took over congress in ’94, then yes you have been patient. When you look at it in terms of how badly we were scapegoated right after the 2003 announcement of marriage equality in MA and all during the 2004 election cycle, then yes you have been patient.

When you look at it in terms of expectations for a party that’s held both congress and the presidency for a whopping six months, then you look like a whining baby. (Sorry!)

Just because you want immediate gratification about these issues doesn’t mean that congress and presidential politics and policy making can accommodate you. As Frank and others are saying, there’s a *process* to all of this, and it involves rounding up and securing votes in congress, which is not an easy thing to do.

Back in 1989, just after we passed our version of ENDA here in MA after a decade of effort, the lead lobbyist (Arlene Isaacson?) spoke to an LGBT group within our company. She started her talk with, “If you like good sausage or good politics, don’t take too close a look at how either are made.” She relayed story after story about the types of things that they had to do to make sure that a promised vote on our ENDA law didn’t “get away.” My “favorite” part of the story was how she had her people shadow legislators the day of the vote–offer to drive them to work, go to breakfast with them, and more–just to make sure that they were present in the legislative chamber to cast their vote for our cause. (There was a recent vote in NH that didn’t go our way, and they cited that it was vacation season and many legislators had taken the day off….)

So, please ease up on Barney, will ya? He understands how congress works, and he’s really good at working the halls of congress. All he’s saying is that there is a process inside the walls of congress that responds neither to the president or to rallies in the street…and he’s like us to understand this and help him out with it. That’s all!

If we get those two things, that would match what I expected from Obama in the first year.

If we can get DADT and DOMA repealed within years 2 and 3, then I think Obama’s administration will have been a smashing success. If we get all that within three years, it beats the crap out of what we’ve gotten from all other presidential administrations combined.

Screw this bipartisonship. You cant include the opposition party if they are not a viable party. What have conservatives been right on these last 9 years…tell me one thing.

Total washington failure IMO. By the end of this first year we better have atleast 1/4 agenda items completed. Though theres no reason why 3 cant be completed this first year…dadt,hate crimes, and enda.

Time for the human rights campaign to start using all that money they raised to actually campaign in the congress for human rights.

Whatever happened to change and progressive politics. One thing for sure…supporters of equality have to apply constant pressure to washington through lobbying, activism, and through MONEY. This seems the only way to get the senate moving.

Frank, We HAVE lobbied out senators, we have done all this and more but we still have nothing worth mentioning.

The other day was just a re-hash of what we already have. I don’t want to even mention the defense of DOMA.

Get off your fat ass Frank and actually DO SOMETHING, god dammit!