I am going to say something that many Democrats may not want to hear, and many Democrats have been turning a blind eye to for some time. The federal level Democrats have done little for the Gay community, other than pay us lip service. Now, that said, I also think they have done little to hurt us as well. In short, the federal level Democrats have been passive bystanders as gay men and women fight to have their relationships recognized, to protect their properties, to live their lives, and work out end of life issues. But right here, and right now, I think it is time for the Democrats to do ONE SIMPLE THING to get us one step closer to equality.
Do not get me wrong, the Democrats have by no means been the aggressive hate mongers that the Republicans have shown themselves to be. They have just been unwilling to spend the political capital to move the gay rights issue forward. Look no further than the political capital rich Bill Clinton, who did not VETO the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) when it hit his desk. For the first time in a long time, a Democrat was forced to "vote" on gay rights issues, and Clinton tossed us under the bus. The Democrats are hoping and praying that the court system will take care of the issue so that they do not have to vote and the truth be known.
Well Democrats, hear me. The courts are in fact doing what you do not have the testicular fortitude to do, just this past week another state (Connecticut) has looked at the matter of law and sided with the gay men and women of America. Now it is time for you to step up and make some small changes to federal law so that we can truly take our newly granted freedoms and let us express them in a way that makes all of us truly American, TAXES!
Ideally, the Democrats would use the upcoming majorities and strip DOMA from the books, but as I said, the Democrats do not want to really spend the political capital on the gay rights issue. That said, I am calling on the Democrats to amend DOMA to allow married gay men and women to be able to check the box on the IRS FORM 1040 as "Married Filing Jointly" or "Married Filing Separately". Just attach it to a bill, like we do everything else.
It is time, I am not calling for the Democrats to push for gay marriage, god knows that will never happen, I am asking for them to remove the laws that are standing in our way on the federal level to fully participate in the institutions that the court systems in 3 states have granted to us. Marriage is an issue of the state, and the federal government should NOT step into it.
Democrats, if you do not have the courage to strip DOMA, it is time to undermine it bit by bit.
As an aside, my partner and I of 14 years are heading to the state of CA this week to tie the knot!
EDIT: This is not a post about PROP 8. For those of us that live outside of California, Prop 8 just means we can no longer go to CA, we have to go to Mass or CT. My point is, the door is open, there are now 3 ways to marriage. May go down to 2, but the point is, the door is open. So the fed needs to get out of the way...