By Colin Campbell 9/25/12 10:51am

bipartisan love

Governor Cuomo in 2011's Pride Parade (Photo: Getty)

Cuomo ‘Elated’ That Some Pro-Gay Marriage GOP’ers Won Their Primaries

After Election Day earlier this month, Republicans who supported New York’s same sex marriage legislation received mixed results against their anti-gay marriage rivals. One GOP senator, Buffalo’s Mark Grisanti, cruised to a comfortable victory, while two other senators, Roy McDonald and Steve Saland faced tough challenges, the result of which was determined by the absentee ballots counted this week. Mr. Saland looks like he ultimately edged out his opponent and declared victory yesterday, but Mr. McDonald appears to have gone down in defeat.

And, asked about these Republicans’ respective electoral situations earlier today, Governor Andrew Cuomo said he was more than pleased despite being a Democrat. Read More

By Hunter Walker 9/11/12 7:01pm

City Hall

Quinn Final Stephanos

Quinn for a Day: Christine Throws Herself a National Coming Out Party

New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn had been to the Democratic National Convention three times before, but this year’s event was different. These days, Ms. Quinn is widely seen as the front-runner in next year’s race to replace Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

In May, just 10 days after President Barack Obama announced his support for same-sex marriage, instantly making it one of the hottest topics of this election cycle, Ms. Quinn married her longtime partner Kim Catullo in a wedding that received almost Kardashian-esque coverage from New York’s political press corps and made her one of the highest-profile married, openly gay politicians in the country.

With her newfound notoriety, it would seem, the stars are aligning for Ms. Quinn to follow Mr. Bloomberg’s footsteps as the most prominent mayor in the country. However, she will first have to cut her path to City Hall through a crowded field of opponents and a Council that may include members eager to exact revenge on the outgoing speaker, while also battling the persistent impression she is a political stand-in, a Medvedev to Mr. Bloomberg’s Putin. Read More

By Hunter Walker 9/04/12 7:15pm

Love & Marriage

Gary Bauer (Photo: Getty)

Gary Bauer’s Anti-Same Sex Marriage Super PAC Campaign Against Obama is Just Getting Started

CHARLOTTE, NC — Evangelist leader Gary Bauer told Politicker his pro-Romney super PAC, Campaign for American Values, won’t just be running one ad attacking President Barack Obama for supporting same sex marriage. Mr. Bauer says the “New Morning” ad is only running in North Carolina during the Democratic National Convention, but that commercial just the beginning of a larger campaign aimed at using the President’s position on gay marriage to drive votes to Mitt Romney in several crucial swing states.

“We plan on running that ad and others like it in a number of swing states,” said Mr. Bauer.  Read More

By Hunter Walker 9/04/12 11:07am

Love & Marriage

Video

A still from the "New Morning" ad. (Photo: YouTube)

Pro-Romney Super PAC Launches Anti-Gay Marriage Ad to Snag Southern Swing State Votes

GASTONIA, NC — A super PAC with ties to evangelist leader Gary Bauer is trying frighten would-be Obama supporters in at least one Southern swing state by raising the specter of the President’s support for gay marriage. The “Campaign for American Values” has launched a pro-Mitt Romney television campaign with an ad warning viewers that ”Obama trying to force gay marriage on this country.”

In the commercial, which is entitled “New Morning,” a couple wakes up to coffee and the threat of legalized same sex marriage as they peruse the morning paper.

“Obama is trying to force gay marriage on this country. That’s not the change I voted for. Marriage is between a man and a woman. That’s not the change I voted for,” one of them says,

“That’s not the change I voted for either,” the other agrees.

The ad closes with a narrator advising the couple to ward off this potential onslaught of married gay couples by voting “for someone with values” as the words “VOTE ROMNEY/RYAN” appear on the screen.  Read More

By Colin Campbell 8/02/12 8:56am

from the streets

(photo: mindymeyer4senate.com)

Mindy Meyer Claims ‘Very Big Gay Following … From the Streets’ [Video]

Last night, Conservative State Senate candidate Mindy “Diva of the District” Meyer went on Yetta Kurland Live, which was certainly a new environment for the young celebrity candidate who has gained national attention for her dazzling website, even though she has little chance in her extremely Democratic district. Notably, the show’s callers and its outspokenly progressive host, Ms. Kurland, pressed Ms. Meyer to explain her actual positions on issues again and again, generating an interesting exchange.

“I’ve been involved with education, also I’m not alive enough to have actively done anything,” Ms. Meyer said, for example, when a caller asked her if she has any accomplishments she can point to. “I’m running for Senate right now because I want to make a difference and I want the power to do that change, but there’s nothing I’ve actively done.” Read More

By Hunter Walker 7/30/12 3:01pm

food fight

Rep. Allen West (Photo: West.House.gov)

Allen West: ‘I Want To Try To Open Up A Chick-Fil-A Franchise’

Florida Congressman Allen West  had a rather interesting response to Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s threats to block the fast food chain Chick-Fil-A from opening a restaurant in the Windy City due to the CEO, Dan Cathy’s, admission he doesn’t support same-sex marriage. Mr. West brought up the Chick-Fil-A controversy during an interview with CNBC’s Rick Santelli today on the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade.

“I had to come up from down South because I wanted to try to open up a Chick-Fil-A franchise here in Chicago,” said Mr. West.

However, it doesn’t seem like the congressman is really putting his money where his mouth is. Read More

By Hunter Walker 7/10/12 1:01pm

Holy Matrimony

Rick Perry (Getty)

Rick Perry: God Hasn’t ‘Changed His Mind’ About Gay Marriage

Texas governor and former presidential candidate Rick Perry sat down for a video interview with National Review Online last week and he discussed his reasons for opposing gay marriage. Mr. Perry addressed the topic when he was asked about voters who admired his economic policies, but wished he would “just back off on the social issues.” He answered by explaining that he thinks, though society may be becoming gay friendly, God’s stance on same-sex marriage is quite clear.

“The issue of traditional marriage is one that continues to bubble forward and I happen to believe that, if you’re going to have a society that is successful economically or otherwise, you’re going to have to have values that you attach that society to. For 2,000 years we have had marriage between a man and a woman,” said Mr. Perry. “I suspect that issue’s not going to go away, but just because you share a different view or you are flexible on the issue does not mean that God has changed his mind about it.” Read More

By Colin Campbell 7/06/12 4:34pm

lgbt

(Photo: Neighborhoodr New York)

Court Rules Against Gay Marriage Foes in New York

Opponents of New York’s 2011 gay marriage law had sought to overturn the legislation under grounds that it violated New York’s Open Meetings Law, arguing the closed-door meetings held by New York State Senate Republicans with Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Michael Bloomberg constituted an illegal violation. But the State Supreme Court stymied their hopes today and ruled in favor of New York State and gay marriage supporters.

“Accordingly, we conclude that the judgment should be reversed insofar as appealed from, and judgment should be entered in favor of defendants declaring that defendant New York State Senate did notviolate the OML in enacting the [Marriage Equality Act] and that marriages performed thereunder are not invalid,” Acting Justice Robert Wiggins declared. Read More

By Colin Campbell 6/20/12 8:03am

frum foray

(Photo: Hamodia)

Democratic Assemblyman’s Ad: ‘Only Secular Jew Who Votes Against Immorality’

The Democratic electorate in southern Brooklyn is changing, with the Russian and Orthodox Jewish vote becoming increasingly salient, and Assemblyman Steve Cymbrowitz knows it.

In Wednesday’s widely-circulated weekend edition of the Orthodox Jewish newspaper Hamodia, Mr. Cymbrowitz took out a full page ad that neither hides his secularism nor his political adherence to conservative political principles, especially on the issue of gay marriage (which is only referred to as “legalizing immorality” in the ad). Read More

By Colin Campbell 10:06am

don't send her the invite

The three candidates last night.

Wendy Long Would Refuse to Attend A Gay Wedding

The three candidates seeking the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand debated last night and several interesting moments came up when discussing the same sex marriage New York enacted last year.

Notably, when one of the candidates, Wendy Long, faced a question as to whether she would, on principle, refuse to attend a same-sex wedding, she answered with a firm “yes.”

The line of questioning appeared to move on before George Maragos could answer the question, but for his part, Bob Turner said, “I would not refuse, no.” Read More