LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
Capital Letters |
by Hastings Wyman |
California's Davis Moves to the Middle Is Gray Davis dancin' with the ones what brung him? Gay men and lesbians were a key part of the coalition that put the California governor in office. And though they're getting some waltzes from him, they're also getting their toes stepped on. Most recently, Davis asked lesbian state Rep. Carole Migden to change her domestic partnership bill to eliminate a requirement that health maintenance organizations that offer spousal benefits be required to offer domestic partner benefits as well. Davis also requested that she limit the benefits to same-sex couples only, inasmuch as heterosexual couples have the option of marriage. Migden complied. Her bill now provides domestic partner benefits for some 250,000 state employees and establishes a state registry for domestic partners. While the proposal isn't as comprehensive as most gay activists, or Migden, wanted, it is likely to pass the legislature and win the governor's signature, and that in itself is a milestone. Still, despite a somewhat less-than-perfect record on gay issues, Governor Davis has surrounded himself with gay and lesbian appointees. Most recently, he named Eric Bauman, the president of Southern California's influential Stonewall Democratic Club, as a special assistant to the Governor. Bauman, who helped make the Stonewall Democrats a force in state politics, is serving in the governor's Los Angeles office. Davis has made a number of other key lesbian and gay appointments: Susan Kennedy, former executive director of the California Democratic Party, is serving in the important post of cabinet secretary. Brian Miller is a legislative analyst in the governor's office. Rita Saenz is Gray's director of social services. Troy Fernandez is director of the governor's San Francisco regional office. Dennis Petrie is deputy director of the Department of Corrections and Tom Soto is serving on the Board of Corrections. Who gets the last waltz? Welcome to the politics of reality. Gay Democrats Moving and Shaking Although they're not getting everything they want from the governor, the Golden State's gay and lesbian community is developing immense clout in state and national politics, to wit: In San Francisco, openly gay Board of Supervisors Chair Tom Ammiano, who led the citywide ballot in the last election, has filed papers to raise money to explore a race for mayor in this fall's election. If he runs, Ammiano will challenge the flamboyant, well-financed incumbent Willie Brown. Political consultant Clint Reilly is also running. The Ammiano/Reilly strategy would be to force Brown into a runoff, then beat him. Brown is the city's first African-American mayor. If Ammiano runs and wins, he will be the city's first gay mayor. In Los Angeles, the group ANGLEAccess Now for Gay and Lesbian Equalityis holding a fundraising dinner on October 2 to benefit the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. The guest speaker? President Clinton. ANGLE has already raised $500,000 for the dinner, dubbed "House Cleaning 2000." That's a lot of access. Gay Man Gets Key Job at Justice Robert Raben, founder of the Lesbian and Gay Congressional Staff Association, is set to become the new Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs, an influential post in the Justice Department. Raben will be the liaison between Attorney General Janet Reno and Congress, helping make important decisions about appointments and policiesincluding legislative issues affecting gay people. Raben is serving in an acting capacity pending confirmation by the Senate. Andmirabile dictuSenate Republicans, including Judiciary Committee Chair Orrin Hatch of Utah, are expected to take favorable action on Raben's nomination. Although Raben had been employed by liberal Democrat Barney Frank on the Judiciary Committee's Democratic staff, the confirmation skids were greased for Raben by none other than House Judiciary Committee Chair Henry Hyde of Illinois and his five subcommittee chairsconservative Republicans all. Hyde and his fellow GOPers on the committee signed a letter to Hatch praising Raben as "intelligent,... insightful, [and] possessed of a keen sense of humor." Raben's new position is more high-powered than the Luxembourg ambassadorship recently given to gay philanthropist James Hormel, but it is also more low-profileperhaps explaining why GOP lawmakers reacted differently to the two appointments. In any case, hats off to President Clinton for making the appointment, Attorney General Janet Reno for supporting it, Congressman Barney Frank for sponsoring it and the House Judiciary Committee Republicans for doing the right thing. Frank Still Neutral in Gore-Bradley Race Congressman Barney Frank, the nation's most prominent and most powerful openly gay political figure, has not yet made a decision to endorse either Vice President Al Gore or former New Jersey Sen. Bill Bradley in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. The Massachusetts Democrat, who takes a leading role on gay issues in the House and also helped organize the National Federation of Stonewall Democratic Clubs last year, is a major player in national Democratic politics. Last year, before House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt, Nebraska Sen. Bob Kerrey and Minnesota Sen. Paul Wellstone withdrew from the Democratic presidential contest, Frank was urging gay and lesbian politicos to hang loose and compare what the candidates offered the gay community. With the Democratic race now down to just Gore and Bradley, Frank still hasn't endorsed anyone, but speaks approvingly of both men. Gore and Bradley "are in a class by themselves" on gay issues, Frank told Capital Letters, though "I would like to see them move better on domestic partnerships." Frank also said he was impressed when Gore, in an interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer, "separated himself from Clinton" on gays in the military. "[Gore] thinks we can do a better job" of administering the controversial "don't ask, don't tell" policy, Frank said. He also noted that Gore's own service in Vietnam would give him a stronger hand than Clinton in dealing with the military establishment. Frank also pointed out that Republican George W. Bush, the governor of Texas, said he would appoint "qualified gays" to federal jobs. Noting the absence of openly gay officials in Bush's Administration in Austin, Frank quipped, "There must be no qualified gay Republicans in Texas." If Gore holds his lead, Frank's case for the vice president which acknowledges some of the gay and lesbian disappointment with Clintonshould help Gore with gay voters. If, however, the Gore-Bradley race tightens, Frank's neutrality could put himand the gay communityin the catbird seat. Kennedy Mystique in Maryland Those Marylanders who are particularly anxious to see another woman join Democratic Sen. Barbara Mikulski in a statewide office may not have to wait too long. Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, daughter of the late Sen. Robert Kennedy, is revving up to run for governor in 2002. Members of the Townsend camp have already begun making contact with gay leaders in preparation for the race. While Townsend has been relatively quiet on gay issues, her minions are giving assurances that she's on our side. Her boss, Gov. Parris Glendeningwho under state law can't run for a third termhas become an outspoken advocate of civil rights for gays. In any case, Townsend's particular combination of the Kennedy smile and moderate politics has given her a nearly 75 percent approval rating from Maryland voters. But Maryland's Morella a No-Go A much-anticipated battle of two pro-gay lawmakers isn't likely to take place in Maryland's U. S. Senate race next year. Incumbent Paul Sarbanes (D), whose voting record on gay issues rates a stellar 100 percent rating from the Human Rights Campaign, looked weak going into next year's campaign season, garnering less than 50 percent in some polls. But gay and lesbian voters could rest easy because his strongest likely challenger was U.S. Rep. Connie Morella, that rare Republican who also scores 100 with HRC. Now it looks like Morella is not going to run, but will stay put in her district in the Washington suburbs. Moreover, despite Sarbanes's tepid hold on the electorate, other big name contenders, such as Republican Congressman Robert Ehrlich, aren't planning to run either. Many of Maryland's gay voters especially the Log Cabin folksare sorry Morella isn't running, but Ehrlich's decision, given his puny 25 percent HRC rating, hasn't disappointed the state's gay politicos. Hastings Wyman has been a D.C. insider for more than three decades. He publishes Southern Political Report, a nonpartisan biweekly political newsletter. He can be reached in care of LETTERS from CAMP Rehoboth or at HwymanSPR@aol.com. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 9, No. 10, July 30, 1999 |