Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton may have a bit of trouble on their hands. Gay activists are putting more pressure on the Democratic candidates for less lackluster remarks on last week's gay marriage ruling.

Lane Hudson of Faith In America took pen to virtual paper today to criticize Obama and Clinton of fearing fundamentalist blowback:

Our candidates, our politicians, our political parties all fear the pushback from the religious fundamentalists in America. They fear that criticism so much, that they lack the courage to take action that would invite that criticism. By doing so, our candidates make the fundamentalists stronger and perpetuate a society where gay and lesbian citizens remain at the back of the bus.

If the Democrats don't grow a pair and revisit the issue, he says, they will have "failed" gay voters.

In the wake of Cuban president Fidel Castro's resignation earlier this year, the balance of power has shifted not only to his brother, Raul, but to another Castro, Mariela, Raul's daughter.

An outspoken gay advocate and head of the National Center for Sex Education, Mariela Castro uses her position to affect positive social change. Now, with her uncle out of power and her father in, Castro's gearing up for a lavender invasion, proposing legislation that will bring bent boys and girls closer to their heterosexual peers.

And she may be making all the right moves.

CONTINUED »

Lane Hudson and Matt Foreman know a little something something about the gay rights movement. As the outgoing leader of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Foreman has helped spearhead a number of movements in Washington, New York and throughout the rest of the United States. The activist tells us he caught the activist bug after witnessing the atrocities of West Virginia's coal mining industry and only later got involved in the nascent gay rights movement. Foreman later got caught up in the more progressive, grass roots-oriented gay rights movement. Hudson, meanwhile, has been involved in activism since his wee years, when political active family members informed his social consciousness. The former Human Rights Campaign staffer gained notoriety after exposing Mark Foley's inappropriate exchanges with congressional pages. He lost his job for his involvement in that scandal and now works as an independent gay rights activists and contributes to Huffington Post. Just in case you didn't know…

The editorial union of these men counts as the first in a sporadic series called "Homo Encounters," during which our editor moderates a conversation between two notable homos from various fields. Today's one super Tuesday, so we thought Hudson and Foreman could offer some interesting thoughts on where the gay movement remains today - and where it's meant to go tomorrow. We don't want to give too much away, but be prepared for the pros and cons of incrementalism, how the Democrats can shape up (or ship out), why the federal level ain't the shit and which political enemies should be our mentors - after the jump, naturally.

CONTINUED »

Matthew Shephard's rolling in his untimely grave. The House Democrats shucked hate crimes legislation from the defense authorization bill. From The Washington Blade:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev) and Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.)Thursday morning acquiesced to demands by House Democratic leaders to drop a gay and transgender inclusive hate crimes bill from the National Defense Authorization Act, a knowledgeable Capitol Hill source said.

The decision kills the hate crimes bill for this year, but House Democrats, led by gay Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), are calling on the Senate to pass a freestanding hate crimes bill as early as February.

Senate Democrats had hoped to pass the DOD authorization bill with the hate crimes measure in tact, saying it was the best strategy for discouraging President Bush from vetoing the hate crimes measure, which Bush opposes.

Particularly spineless Democrats apparently rallied against the measure because they felt they wouldn't get the votes.

Rabble-rousing Lane Hudson calls "bullshit", after the jump…

CONTINUED »

It's never too early to get excited about the Out 100, gay glossy Out's annual celebration of the year's great, gay people, places and things. Well, actually just people.

The mag's tight-lipped about the honorees, but their celebratory blog posted this picture of 2007's "Rabble-rousers". We don't know how they did it, but the Out staffers and photographer François Rousseau managed to get Joe Solmonese and Lane Hudson in the same frame. The men, of course, worked together at Human Rights Campaign until Hudson outed Mark Foley and subsequently left the powerful non-profit. Also pictured: gay soldier Jason Knight and ACLU's leader Anthony Romero.

In other Out 100 news, we hear that honoree Darryl Stephens will finally acknowledged his homo inclinations. This will be the first time the Noah's Arc actor publicly "comes out".

As if we didn't know…

Mark Foley's political career may have ended after Lane Hudson exposed his page-loving ways, but the Floridian Republicans still holding on to a lot of dough. Even more than Democratic Representative Tim Mahoney, who's currently running for reelection:

Although freshman Democratic U.S. Rep. Tim Mahoney is expected to report later today that he has more than $1.1 million in cash on hand for his 2008 reelection bid, he’s not the cash king in congressional District 16.

That distinction still belongs to scandal-tainted former Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Foley, who resigned last year. The still-existing Friends of Mark Foley campaign reported today that it has $1.3 million in leftover money even after dishing out $151,202 in legal fees last quarter and cutting refund checks totaling $18,492 to past contributors.

Wait, wait - Mark Foley still has friends? Also, why should a disgraced politician be allowed to use donated money to fight a salacious legal battle?

The fagalas over at Out have been hard at work compiling a list of today's gay movers and shakers.

While they're tight lipped about who made this year's Out 100, we hear the fag rag's end-of-the-year issue will feature a shot of HRC president Joe Solmonese, free speech defender Anthony Romero of the ACLU, Lane Hudson and twice booted soldier Jason Knight.

Things may get a little awkward for Hudson and Solmonese. Hudson worked for HRC before outing Mark Foley, a move that cost both men their jobs.

Lane Hudson's at it again. The former HRC staffer behind Foleygate just filed a Federal Election Commission complaint against potential presidential contender Fred Thompson.

CONTINUED »

• Focus on the Family, Southern Baptist Convention and other conservative groups (pictured above) are already pleading their case to the American Psychological Association, which will be conferring on reparative therapy. The groups penned a letter reading, "We believe that psychologists should assist clients to develop lives that they value, even if that means they decline to identify as homosexual." These people have some fucked up value systems.

• Budapest Mayor Gabor Demszky thinks anti-pride homophobes are ""intolerant, primitive and cowardly." Word up. Oh, and his party, The Alliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ), want a parliamentary coalition against homophobia. Double word up.

• L'Oreal-owned Garnier plays hair politics. And pay fine for playing said hair politics.

CONTINUED »

Lane Hudson has some beef with Barack Obama. The DC-based blogger believes Obama made a grave, potentially homophobic mistake during last night's presidential debates. And he calls that mistake the presidential candidate's "frat boy moment".

CONTINUED »

Lane Hudson made history when he blew Mark Foley's page loving lid. The Florida Congressman resigned and revealed his homo ways. The Republican party fell over itself trying to cover-up a cover-up. And the nation enrolled in collective therapy after reading Foley's incriminating, cringe-worthy instant messages with under age boys. The virtual smoking gun.

No doubt the entire debacle would never have gone down had it not been for the internet and, of course, blogs. You may remember the whole drama started when Hudson posted those IMs on his anonymous blog, StopSexPredators. But Hudson's just some gay dude, right? Right. Hudson proved himself to be a formidable political operative, all with the click of a mouse.

We know we don't need to tell you blogs are more powerful than anyone ever imagined. And, as Hudson writes for AlterNet, they ain't going nowhere:

The blogosphere is a living breathing medium, responding to the input it receives from the public and its readers. Jump into the blogosphere and make your voice heard.

You know what they say: if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

Looks like we're here to stay, homies, so take a little ride with us. We drive fast, but take our time on the curves, if you know what we mean… (Wait, what do we mean?)

• Army Staff Sgt. Edmundo F. Estrada from Virginia's Fort Eustis has been charged with rape, indecent assault, having an inappropriate relationship with a trainee, and cruelty and maltreatment of subordinates, after another solider alleged Estrada forced him to dress up like Superman and then, well, raped him. He told his victim that he'd previously "help soldiers with their self-confidence and alleviate depression". Um right… Could it be Devery L. Taylor's going to get a cell mate? [Pilot Online]

• The media's been so focussed on Ann Coulter's faggot flinging that no one's acknowledging her suggestion that gays should be Republicans: "Gays make a lot of money and are victims of crime… [And] Republicans are anti-tax and anti-crime." Lane Hudson says she's sort of, not really saying gays should be protected by hate crime laws. Do you agree or do you think Hudson's had a few too many poppers? [News From The Left]

• Long Hill, New Jersey mayor and practicing lesbian Gina Genovese will be running for Senator. That's really all you need to know. [The Star Ledger]

• Soulforce rides again! And they're coming to a town near you! [Soulforce]

• So, too, are Scissor Sisters! [Scissor Sisters]

• We knew it all along: Britney Spears is the anti-Christ! [Mollygood]

• Rich old tax evader and gay marriage activist Charles Merill wants to be the next non-gay gay artistic messiah. To this end, he's entered a painting into Charles Saatchi's art competition, Smackdown. And, not surprisingly, he wants you vote. How do we know? He sent out his own press release. [Earth Times]

• DNC Chairman Howard Dean on the late AIDS activist, Bob Hattoy: "This weekend, America lost a true champion for justice. Aside from being a fierce advocate on causes ranging from LGBT rights and HIV issues, to civil liberties and the environment, Bob Hattoy was a wonderfully charming man with a tremendous sense of humor… Through Bob's life and service to our country, we are all reminded of the need to do more to encourage greater participation of all Americans, including gays and lesbians, in our political process." [365 Gay]

It seems Catholic League President Bill Donohue's got a history of raising a public stink. Long before he terrorized "pro-gay" John Edwards bloggers Melissa McEwan and Amanda "Martyr" Marcotte, he got his kicks taking on another of the Church's greatest enemies: Lipton Onion Dip.

No, we're not shitting you. Apparently the company ran a print ad back in 2001 featuring a man lining up to Eucharist (you know, when people queque up for a bit of Jesus' blood and body) with a bowl full of instant mix. The implication, of course, is that the man's going to dip a bit of Jesus in his special sauce. Needless to say, this didn't sit well with the God-fearing Donohue. In a press release found by Firedoglake, Donohue and his coven wrote:

The Lipton ad is not poking gentle fun at Catholicism the way some other ads have. Rather, it is demeaning the Eucharist. And there is nothing more central to Catholicism than the belief that the Eucharist is the body and blood of Jesus Christ.

Sure it may be a laugh, but ain't nothing funny about the effect of Donohue's holy war against Marcotte and McEwan.

Our old friend Lane Hudson informs us that the girls have found themselves on the receiving end of a number of not-so-veiled death threats. How not-so-veiled? How about this:

YOU RACIST WHORE. FAT UGLY BITCH. SUCK MY LONG COCK ASSHOLE I HOPE YOU KIDS NEVER LIVE AND YOUR PARENTS DIE A TRAGIC DEATH YOU ASSHOLE BITCH!
I HOPE YOUR WOMB IS BARREN AND YOUR CAREER PLUMMETS TO HELL YOU BITCH

That's not very Christian, now is it?

If you're looking to raise a little stink yourself, Hudson's provided Donohue's contact information, here.