Vice-Presidential nominee Joe Biden will speak at the national Human Rights Campaign Dinner in Washington DC on October 4th. “Senator Biden’s record in the United States Senate is one of support and understanding that has been unwavering throughout his career.” HRC President Joe Solmonese said after Biden’s VP selection.
I’ve always loved Joe Biden. He was only 29 years old when he won his Senate seat. He took the train home from DC every night to raise his kids. He’s the real thing. What It Takes, by Richard Ben Cramer, is a fantastic behind the scenes look at the ’88 Primary Campaigns and Biden is a major character. It really gives you an idea just how ordinary (and extraordinary) of a guy he truly is. Below the fold is Biden on the stump yesterday, doing what he does best in Ohio.
mark
Fired Up ready for JOE
I hope they question who’s kid’s college fund went down the drain this week?
Who has to delay their retirement for years unknown?
Who’s pension evaporated?
Mark Snyder
The Human Rights Campaign does not speak for the queer community.
They continuously endorse Republicans and McCain Supporters ie Joe lieberman and Susan Collins, and they sold out the trans community time and time again.
Boycott HRC!
CitizenGeek
Susan Collins is a pro-gay candidate. So is Joe Lieberman. Despite the blind, absurd hatred that comes from morons like Andrew Sullivan and yourself (people that hate the HRC are morons, yes), the HRC actually IS NOT a DNC sub-committee and is interested in endorsing pro-gay candidates, not just Democratic candidates.
“time and time again”? Please – spare me the hysteria. The HRC removed trans inclusion from ENDA because WITH TRANS INCLUSION IT ABSOLUTELY WOULD NOT (NOT – NOT – NOT – NOT … is it getting through yet?) have passed. IT WOULDN’T HAVE PASSED. The HRC was being REALISTIC – despite what morons like Mark Leno who buy into the idiotic HRC hatred, the entire country isn’t L.A. or San Francisco and in the REAL WORLD there are conservatives. The HRC shouldn’t be hated for acknowledging this reality.
Seriously, grow up for crying out loud!
Ethan
No Mark…not going to boycott HRC, send them more money. They are doing a great job in a difficult situation. Navigating Washington and the rest of the country… You have to use wisdom to bring about progress and HRC has time and again proven this.. Can you not see how momentous this is??? a Vice Presidential candidate speaking at an HRC dinner….hello
John
Los Angeles isn’t “real” now? That might come as a surprise to the millions of folks who live there. That’s the conservative “inside the beltway” mentality I suppose. If it doesn’t fit into some congressman’s lowest common denominator legislative agenda, it doesn’t even exist.
I will say this. L.A. is as “real” as Washington DC. Not everything in the universe revolves around the White House and Congress. From New Hampshire to Oregon, the states are largely making progress on LGBT issues on their own terms. No thanks to Uncle Sam.
Sorry HRC, but my money’s going to the state civil rights organizations that are fighting for my interests. I want to know that my donation actually goes to the frontlines (instead of Nancy Pelosi’s $5,000 a plate dinner soiree).
mark
HRC won’t get another dime from me, and I supported them for decades. The dropping trans people from ENDA was UNFORGIVABLE.
If the country isn’t ready to not discriminate against ALL of our community, I’ll wait.
AladinSane
If ENDA was only going to pass if it protected freckled lesbian midgets, I’d support it. As Confuscius said, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step!”
CitizenGeek
At last, some sense on the issue from AladinSane.
“Los Angeles isn’t “real” now?”
You know that’s not what I said. You know perfectly well that Louisiana, Oklamhoma and Utah are NOT like L.A., regardless of how many people live there.
Jaroslaw
Dear Mark – I understand your frustration and disappointment that HRC took the course it did in supporting ENDA without Trans inclusion. In a perfect world, we would all get what we want. But since that is not likely to happen anytime soon:
I would really like to know if you and others who are unable to forgive HRC have ever worked in committees or on campaigns or been in charge of a large project. Seriously. Compromise is inevitable or you have gridlock.
Allen
Good for Joe Biden. 😀 I’m glad he’s speaking at the National HRC dinner.
I volunteered at the Twin Cities HRC dinner last weekend w/ Al Franken speaking and he was brilliant.
I’m glad to include the HRC along w/ other organizations I volunteer for. At least, I leave my computer and try to make a difference. I bet most of you can’t say that.
Right?
Charles Merrill
I don’t support HRC but give directly to the candidates. I don’t need a third party to adminster my donations which may go to a GOP candidate. Politicians accept their invitations to speak. Not the Presidential candidates Obama or McCain which would put the media in a homophobic turmoil, but second in command and Bill Clinton, yes Bill is always around.
The backbone of the HRC here in Palm Springs are mainly Republican Log Cabinettes.
Brian Miller
Perhaps Biden can explain his strong lobbying for, and vote for, DOMA in 1996, and why he continues to support government-enforced segregation of gay Americans, when he speaks at HRC’s dinner.
Brian Miller
the HRC actually IS NOT a DNC sub-committee
Actually, now it is.
Ever since Solomonese came on board and changed its mission statement, HRC has become a partisan Democratic Party organization.
It’s no longer a gay rights organization either. None other than Cuc Vu, an officer of HRC, noted that HRC would no longer focus exclusively on gay issues — but would also jump into racial controversies and various other “social justice” causes (lobbying for a government-operated health care system and other Democratic Party priorities).
Some of the Log Cabin Republicans (who aren’t the brightest bulbs on the tree themselves) might be involved with HRC despite this fact, but HRC is most assuredly on the record as being a de-facto arm of the Democratic Party’s operations, not a gay and lesbian lobby.
Bill Perdue
Joe Biden likes to tell a little fib: he tells people he represents Delaware. Bullshit. He’s was elected by the Banker’s Party to be the Senator from Credit Cards.
He led the fight to end bankruptcy protections for working people and consumers to please the banks. He and his son profited handsomely for pimping for B of A and MNBA. He’s not the first Democrat or Republican to pay their dues in the world’s second oldest profession, but he is one of the slimiest. He even went so far as to quash an amendment to the BoA bankruptcy bill that would have given the families of GI’s trapped in Iraq a break. Like McCain, Obama and Palin Biden is a hustler bought and paid for by corporate predators.
Biden voted for DOMA and DADT and like Obama sat twiddling his thumb up has ass while Barney Frank gutted ENDA and the sow Pelosi tossed the hate crimes bill overboard.
Biden was an early and strong supporter of Clinton’s embargo that killed hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children and repeated Clintons lies to ‘explain’ his rabid support for Bush’s even more murderous invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq.
If the Democrats wake up losers on November 4th, it’ll be because they stupidly believe that we don’t remember little things like the fact that while the Democrats controlled Congress for the last two years they continued to stick it to unions, workers and consumers with support for NAFTA, bailouts and tax breaks for the rich and more does of ‘benign neglect’ for the rest of us. They aren’t fixing the infrastructure or providing health care or education – all that money goes to Bush’s war. They’ve taken no steps to ease the double dose of exploitation and racism effecting immigrants, Native Americans and African Americans.
That’s why huge numbers of people, as they always do, will ‘forget’ to vote for the party of Mondale, Dukakis, Gore and Kerry, Obama and Biden on November 4th.
Then the Democrats and the HRC apologists will do what they always do when the American people tell them to shove it. They’ll blame it all on Nader, the heretic, the arch villain, the antiObama, and the spawn of whatever.
mark
Jaroslaw
Yes I’ve worked on committees, and I’ve been a State delegate the year MN became the 8th State to pass it’s ENDA, and we’ve held a Senator’s fundraiser….what are your credentials?
I’ve been in the trenches for Gay Rights since 1972, and in the trenches with AIDS since 83, I don’t expect a perfect world, I do expect gays,and lesbians to stand up with our allies,
EVERYTIME.
Brian Miller
I would really like to know if you and others who are unable to forgive HRC have ever worked in committees or on campaigns
What I’m more interested in hearing is what these myriad HRC apologists and their committees and campaigns have actually *done* on LGBT issues.
HRC has made literally hundreds of millions of dollars since it was started and has accomplished absolutely nothing of note.
Marriage and civil unions were accomplished through lawsuits and lobbying by small local groups.
On federal issues, HRC has not gotten a single major piece of legislation passed or even amended.
With a record like that, it’s a bit rich to watch them lecture everyone else on “how things are done.”
Brian Miller
Gosh, the Biden and HRC apologists have suddenly vanished.
I hope they remember this moment the next time they start lecturing LGBT people on how important and vital they are.
Jaroslaw
OK Mark, all or nothing but it doesn’t sound like a good strategy to me.
Jaroslaw
Mark – one more thing – are you telling me you never or hardly ever compromised?
Jaroslaw
Brian Miller HRC may not be able to claim they pushed through a piece of legislation – maybe that is a good thing. Everytime something positive is said about Gay people someone siezes on it. Remember the hoopla about Gays being better educated and having more disposable income? Some religious groups used that info to say we didn’t experience discrimination.
But more importantly, social change occurs very slowly and in degrees. Everything I’ve read about it says there is a lot of groundwork that happens which allows certain lobbying and lawsuits to take effect. If it was simply lawsuits alone that made change, we wouldn’t need any other actions. But alas history shows the court is a product of the times. I won’t go on, either you get it or you don’t.
In the final analysis, you may be right. Maybe HRC isn’t worth a damn. But it is hard to imagine that conventions and meetings and all manner of “off the books” interpersonal exchanges mean nothing.
Brian Miller
it is hard to imagine that conventions and meetings and all manner of “off the books” interpersonal exchanges mean nothing
They don’t mean *nothing* — they often make a huge difference to the careers of the various people at HRC.
For instance, it was recently noted that Joe Solomonese of HRC makes a very large paycheck — over a quarter million a year, if I recall correctly.
It’s likely that all the hobnobbing and politicking pay off very handsomely for HRC’s top brass, in pay and “access” to powerful people in Washington.
It doesn’t pay off for the average HRC contributor, member, or LGBT American in successful legislation though. If your goal is an HRC that gets stuff done for the average American LGBT person, HRC has failed miserably.
Brian Miller
If it was simply lawsuits alone that made change, we wouldn’t need any other actions.
What significant advances have been made in the past 16 years that weren’t the result of a lawsuit?
Not a single one, from what I can see.
A pretty damning indictment of the “play the Washington game and things will happen” strategy, if you think about it.
Friends of mine were involved in both the Vermont and Massachusetts lawsuits leading to civil unions and marriage equality, respectively. Many of them received angry, panicked calls from top HRC officials and senior Democrats (including Barney Frank) demanding they “back down for the good of the community to avoid backlash.” Thank Goddess that they didn’t take that “advice!”
Jaroslaw
Brian – it is very hard for me to believe you have done all the things you say when you make posts like you did above.
OK, the Massachusetts and Vermont lawsuits worked out. AndI’m happy for it. Hopefully I’ll get married someday. But just as often, or more, legal precedents are set that are very hard and often almost impossible to undo. (I worked for an attorney firm. What you read about legal stuff in the paper is ONLY the tip of the iceberg)
Further, I didn’t say lawsuits were unnecessary – but it is clear they don’t work alone. But you’re not reading what I wrote anyway so why am I replying to you?