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Democrats kill GOP attempt to cut AIDS bill

Now that Democrats have stopped the Republican filibuster of the HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Tuberculosis bill, Republicans are trying Plan B, which is to scuttle the bill with all manner of Christmas tree amendments.

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) proposed substantially limiting the bill's geographic reach. His amendment was slapped down, 70-24.

Of the 48 Democrats who voted, 48 (100%) voted "yes" on the motion to table this pernicious amendment. Of the 46 Republicans who voted, 22 (48%) voted "yes".

<<< New JibJab: Time for Some Campaignin' | Home | Obscene: Dole tries to name AIDS bill after Helms >>>

Obscene: Dole tries to name AIDS bill after Helms

Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-NC) yesterday introduced an amendment that would have added the name of Jesse Helms to the title of the HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria bill that is before the Senate. Helms, who died eleven days ago, was the nation's most vociferous foe of federal funding for HIV/AIDS programs from the epidemic's beginning until he left the Senate.

The name of the Act proposed in S. 2731 is "Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act of 2008". The Act would be named after former Reps. Tom Lantos (D-CA-12) and Henry Hyde (R-IL-06), who worked together in their last years in Congress to achieve bipartisan support for federal funding for the fight against these diseases. Sen. Dole apparently thought the title was missing something. From the Congressional Record:

SA 5074. Mrs. DOLE submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by her to the bill S. 2731, to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2009 through 2013 to provide assistance to foreign countries to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

On page 1, line 5, strike "and Henry J. Hyde" and insert ", Henry J. Hyde, and Jesse Helms".

Recall that Helms said that gays caused the AIDS epidemic and victimized Ryan White, threaten the survival of the American family, are in a battle against American values, and have the ultimate aim of having the American people accept "their perverted lifestyle". Find more Helms-isms here and here.

Dole can be given feedback about her amendment here. She is in a tough race for re-election against Democrat Kay Hagan.

<<< Democrats kill GOP attempt to cut AIDS bill | Home | McCain on gay issues in the New York Times >>>

McCain on gay issues in the New York Times

Republican soon-to-be presidential nominee John McCain sat down with the New York Times for yesterday's edition and revealed yet again that he can double-talk with the best of them. Among other revelations: a child would be better off a) being adopted by a drunk, divorced adulterer and his drug-addicted second wife or b) in an orphanage than c) being adopted by a loving gay couple.

He's not too old to be president, but his ideas certainly are.

...Q: President Bush believes that gay couples should not be permitted to adopt children. Do you agree with that?

Mr. McCain: I think that we've proven that both parents are important in the success of a family so, no I don’t believe in gay adoption.

Q: Even if the alternative is the kid staying in an orphanage, or not having parents.

Mr. McCain: I encourage adoption and I encourage the opportunities for people to adopt children I encourage the process being less complicated so they can adopt as quickly as possible. And Cindy and I are proud of being adoptive parents.

Q: But your concern would be that the couple should [be] a traditional couple

Mr. McCain: Yes....

Q: I think the one difference is whether or not as a condition of getting these [federal faith based] monies, that these organization say they will not take into account religion or other factors in hiring decisions.

Mr. McCain: Obviously it’s very complicated because if this is an organization that says we want people in our organization that are Baptists or vegetarians or whatever it is, they should not be required to hire someone that they don't want to hire in my view. Listen, this is the kind of the issue that goes on with the Boy Scouts, it goes on with a number of other issues. I think the president's faith-based organization has been successful and I support what he has done

Q: I guess the way opponents describe it means that these groups are allowed to discriminate in hiring.

Mr. McCain: I can only answer it to say that I think faith-based organizations have been one of the more successful parts of the Bush Administration and I would continue it....

Q: If California wants to legalize gay marriage, should it be permitted to do so?

Mr. McCain: I respect the rights of the states to make those decisions. I obviously am personally in favor of preserving the unique status of marriage between man and woman. And I also would point out that we passed a thing called the Defense of Marriage Act, which I know you’re familiar with, where we said that states were not required to recognize in their states the decision that other states made. In other words, if the state of Massachusetts recognized marriage between man and --- had allowed same-sex marriage, that does not mean that that decision can be imposed on the state of Arizona. The state of Arizona will make that decision.

Q: But if the state wanted to do it on the own, you would not support taking action to stop it?

Mr. McCain: If the people wanted to amend the constitution in order to support the unique status, affirm the unique status, I certainly would support that. But if they decide not to, that's a state decision that's made by the state.

<<< Obscene: Dole tries to name AIDS bill after Helms | Home | Musgrave goes crazy over non-existent China-Cuba oil plan >>>

Musgrave goes crazy over non-existent China-Cuba oil plan

Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO-04) has gone over the edge during multiple congressional sessions by introducing federal marriage amendments that would enshrine anti-gay bigotry in the United States Constitution. Now that she is running scared in her current re-election campaign, Musgrave is resorting to a whole new level of irresponsibility regarding Americans' energy worries, repeating a rumor first uttered and later recanted by Dick Cheney. According to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Musgrave

repeated Cheney's bogus claim that China is drilling for oil off the coast of Florida. Musgrave repeated the myth more than two weeks after Cheney himself acknowledged it was false and Republican Senator Mel Martinez, a former Chairman of the Republican National Committee, said "Any talk of using some fabricated Cuba-China connection as an argument to change U.S. policy has no merit" and that "Reports to the contrary are simply false. They are akin to urban legends."

Musgrave has engaged in fear-mongering regarding gay families many times in the past, and now she is preying on Americans' worries about spiraling energy costs as well.

Musgrave is being challenged by Democrat Betsy Markey, a successful businesswoman who is also a former staffer on Capitol Hill and in the U.S. Departments of State and Treasury.

<<< McCain on gay issues | Home | Democrats break GOP AIDS bill filibuster >>>

Democrats break GOP AIDS bill filibuster

Republican senators had been holding up S. 2731, the Lantos/Hyde Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act of 2008. Sixty "yes" votes had been needed to pass a motion to close debate in order to break the Republican filibuster. On Friday, of 51 Democrats, 41 (80%) voted "yes", 10 (20%) were absent; of 49 Republicans, 24 (49%) voted "yes", 3 (6%) voted "no", and 22 (45%) were absent.

If the entire Senate had voted in the proportion that the Democrats did, the filibuster would never have begun; if the entire Senate had voted in the proportion that the Republicans did, the AIDS bill would still be stalled.

<<< Musgrave goes crazy over non-existent China-Cuba oil plan | Home | Sen. Paula Aboud rips the Arizona Senate >>>

Sen. Paula Aboud rips the Arizona Senate

Right-wingers in the Arizona legislature tried to pass SCR 1042, which would place an anti-gay marriage amendment on this November's ballot. Out Arizona state Senator Paula Aboud (D-28) tried to filibuster on the last day of the legislative session so that the legislature would adjourn without the bill being heard. Republican senators blatantly violated the Senate's rules and cut off the filibuster by turning off the chamber's microphones while pro-LGBT legislators were speaking and then turning the floor over to anti-gay senators. SCR 1042 then went to a vote and received the bare minimum of 16 votes to pass.

This is a video of Sen. Aboud's reaction and subsequent explanation of her vote on SCR 1042:

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