Out For Democracy

HIV/AIDS: Where the Candidates Stand

From Kaiser Daily: Most Democratic presidential candidates would support lifting a ban on federal funding for needle-exchange programs and replacing abstinence-only sex education with comprehensive HIV prevention programs if elected, according to a survey released Wednesday ahead of World AIDS Day, the AP/Sioux City Journal reports. The survey was conducted by AIDS Project of Central Iowa, Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa and several other groups in the state. It included three questions and was sent to Democratic and Republican presidential candidates (AP/Sioux City Journal, 11/29).

The questions are:

• Do you support the Early Treatment for HIV Act (ETHA), which expands Medicaid for HIV-positive people who would otherwise need to become completely disabled in order to qualify for Medicaid-covered services?
• Do you support the replacement of funding for international and domestic "abstinence only" HIV prevention programs with scientifically based, comprehensive, age-appropriate sexuality education programs?
• Do you support access to sterile syringes, as a means of protecting public health, by lifting the ban on federal funding for syringe exchange? (Survey text, 11/28).

Among the Democratic candidates, Sen. Joe Biden (Del.), former Sen. John Edwards (N.C.), Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson met the deadline for the survey and all answered "yes" to the three questions. Answers from Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) were too late to be included in materials distributed by the coalition. However, her campaign "did respond 'yes' to the questions" after the deadline, Becky Johnson with the AIDS Project of Central Iowa said.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, both of whom are running for the Republican presidential nomination, declined to answer the questionnaire. The remaining Republican and Democratic candidates did not respond, according to the AP/Journal.

The coalition in a statement said there has been a "lack of leadership at all levels that has allowed HIV to continue to spread through inaction and failed promises." The other agencies involved in the questionnaire include the American Red Cross Central Iowa Chapter, Lutheran Services in Iowa Refugee Cooperative, Urban Dreams, Community HIV/Hepatitis Advocates of Iowa Network and Creative Visions (AP/Sioux City Journal, 11/29).

The survey is available online.

Sean Kosofsky on John Edwards

Leadership means taking the lead and it also means taking risks. Whenever leaders announce their personal political endorsements it spurs discussion, debate and disagreement, and I have decided to go public with my presidential endorsement for the 2008 election. I have endorsed John Edwards. My endorsement is not the endorsement of any organization I am affiliated with, it is my personal choice alone. And I hope it will bring other Edwards supporters out of the closet.

Continue reading this article at Bilerico

Hillary Clinton to Talk About HIV/AIDS at Evangelical Mega-Church

Hillary Clinton will be participating in a Global Summit on HIV/AIDS and the Church, according to a report in Newsmax.  Clinton was invited to speak by evangelical power-player Pastor Rick Warren.  The event takes place at Warren’s Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California.

Warren is best known as the other of The Purpose Driven Life, and been a strong HIV Advocate for HIV/AIDS.  Warren has often criticized the evangelical church, and Baptists, in particular for being  "known for what we’re against rather than what we’re for.”

This is not the first time a Presidential Candidate has appeared at the Saddleback Church.  Barack Obama appeared at the 2006 Summit on HIV/AIDS, where he delivered his most substantive speech on HIV/AIDS of this campaign.

Evangelicals were once considered the core of the Republican Party, but are now considered a more diverse group of voters.  Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean recently addressed the National Baptist Convention, and the Democrats Faith in Action Program, created by Dean, has been reaching out to people of all faiths.

Posted by David Mariner at 08:50 PM | Comments (0)

Hillary Clinton Announces LGBT Supporters

From the Washington Blade: Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign released a new list of prominent gay supporters today.

In a list released first Wednesday to the Blade, Clinton's campaign identified 21 gay professionals and activists who recently endorsed her White House run.

Names on the list include H. Alexander Robinson, executive director of the National Black Justice Coalition; Dana Beyer, who is transgender and a member of the Human Rights Campaign board of governors; and Rep. Patricia Todd, the first openly gay member of the Alabama House of Representatives.

"I am honored to have the support of these leaders in the LGBT community," Clinton said. "Together, we can end the divisive politics of the current administration and renew the promise of fairness and equality for all Americans."

Names on the list, in alphabetical order, include:

- Michael Agins, Agins and Associates principal
- Dana Beyer, Human Rights Campaign board of governors
- Barbara Casbar-Siperstein, Stonewall Democrats national board
- Catherine Dodd, a former Department of Health & Human Services
regional director
- Earl Fowlkes, International Federation of Black Prides president
- Jesse Garcia, Stonewall Democrats national board
- Robert Hanson, Levi Strauss of America president
- Jo Hoenninger, a former Servicemembers Legal Defense Network co-
chair
- Ray Holm, Human Rights Campaign board of governors
- Leslie Katz, a former San Francisco Democratic Party chair
- Peter Pappas, Human Rights Campaign board of governors
- Dana Perlman, Human Rights Campaign board of directors
- Craig Roberts, Stonewall Democrats national board
- H. Alexander Robinson, National Black Justice Coalition executive
director
- Scott Safier, Stonewall Democrats national board
- Rep. Patricia Todd, Alabama House of Representatives
- Paul Tran, Stonewall Democrats national board
- Steve VanHook, Stonewall Democrats national board
- Ben Waldman, former Microsoft vice president
- Jon Winkleman, Stonewall Democrats national board
- Herb Zeman, Stonewall Democrats national board

Clinton's campaign last released a sampling of gay supporters in April. That list of 26 names included sports legend Billy Jean King, among others.

Stonewall Democrats Honor National Transgender Day of Remembrance

Today, the National Stonewall Democrats released the following statement in commemoration of the Transgender Day of Remembrance:

"Today, our community remembers the those among us whose lives were lost because of the bigotry shown towards their expression of gender. Transgender Americans are routinely asked to employ a level of courage which few of us maintain. Where ignorance responds to that courage with a display of violence, our community must reward courage with a demonstration of commitment.

Violence towards transgender Americans can be dramatically reduced by affirming individual dignity through equal enforcement of employment and hate crime laws. If we are serious about reducing violence towards transgender Americans, then we must proactively work towards providing all of our community equal protection under the law. It is our actions, rather than words, which which will demonstrate our tribute.

Stonewall Democrats take our own name from an historic catalyst, the Stonewall Inn riots, an event largely created under the leadership of transgender members of our community. Today, transgender Democrats continue to demonstrate their contribution to LGBT advancement within our organization as chapter presidents, board members and officers of individual state Democratic parties.

Whenever transgender citizens are told that their inclusion hinders the advancement of the LGBT movement, our own history is ignored and strategic lessons forgotten. As we remember the lives of those we have lost, we must work to secure equal protections for our entire movement. We owe a special duty towards those whose contributions have already led to legal protections for many in our community but not for themselves. If we are to reduce violence against transgender citizens, we must reduce attempts to marginalize transgender Americans within the law and, when necessary, within our own community."

Jon Hoadley, Executive Director

The Day of Remembrance is a tribute to the lives of transgender Americans who have lost their lives as victims of hate crimes targetting individuals based on gender identity. It is marked on November 20. Begun in 1998, the day was first organized as a vigil in San Francisco to remember the life of Rita Hester following her murder the year before. Today, the LGBT community marks this day with vigils and events across the country.

Barney Frank Endorses Hillary Clinton

From the Clinton Campaign: The Clinton Campaign announced the endorsement of Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank and named him as an Economic Advisor to the Campaign.

“I have from the beginning of this campaign believed that Hillary Clinton was the candidate best qualified to serve as President,” Rep. Frank said. “I am convinced that once elected, the qualities she will bring to the job - commitment, intellect, and political skills - will make her an extremely effective leader in our effort to reverse the badly flawed course on which George Bush and past Republican Congresses have set this country.

“I am particularly pleased by her commitment to reverse the economic policies that have created a situation in which as the country progresses economically, only a small number of Americans benefit. Her understanding of the need to implement policies that provide fairness for middle and working class people is very important. She has shown an ability to fight for progressive values in a way that is capable of appealing to the majority of our fellow citizens, and I believe that she is both politically and substantively the candidate best qualified to be our nominee.

“As Chair of the House Financial Services Committee with major responsibilities for various parts of our economy, I particularly look forward to working with her and members of her administration in once again demonstrating that economic growth and a concern for economic fairness in fact are reinforcing values, and not, as the current administration believes, in competition with each other.

“In addition, based on my work with her on issues involving discrimination, I am convinced that Hillary Clinton is the candidate best equipped to pass laws that will treat all Americans with dignity, fairness and equality no matter who they are or who they love.”

“I’m honored to have the support of one of the sharpest minds in Congress,” Clinton said. “Barney has devoted his life to championing economic fairness and civil rights, and expanding opportunity for all Americans. I’m delighted he’ll take a leadership role in our campaign.”

Giuliani HIV/AIDS Advisor: Cause for Concern

From Kaiser: A recent opinion piece by Sally Pipes -- president and CEO of the Pacific Research Institute, a think tank that receives some funding from drug companies -- about intellectual property rights and compulsory licenses for patented antiretroviral drugs is "frightening," Andrew Green, a publishing fellow, writes in the American Prospect. If Pipes were "just running a think tank with pharmaceutical funding, it could be read as a shill piece and dismissed. But there's more to Pipes' biography: She is also a health care adviser to Rudy Giuliani," the former New York City mayor who is running for the Republican presidential nomination, Green adds (Green, American Prospect, 11/15).

In her opinion piece, Pipes says it was a "staggering display of cluelessness" for Rep. Tom Allen (D-Maine) and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) to sponsor a resolution that praises the Thai government for its decision to issue compulsory licenses to make generic versions of patented antiretroviral drugs. She adds that Thailand's actions "threaten to upset the economic incentives that allow Western firms to produce novel cures," saying, "Without patent protections, the drug industry as we know it would collapse, and development of new drugs would be significantly curtailed" (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 10/18).

Pipes opinion piece "can be read both as a signal that her role is expanding and as a preview of the HIV/AIDS policy she is encouraging Giuliani to adopt, specifically one without regard for the immediate need for as many cheap generic antiretrovirals as possible," Green writes. According to Green, while this is "cause for concern," the "real crisis" is that "Giuliani might actually be receptive to her arguments."

Giuliani has "expressed an interest in continuing and possibly expanding the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief," but it is "apparent" he has "thought little about what that actually means," Green says. In addition, Giuliani has not described his HIV prevention strategy or whether he would expand treatment options, according to Green. "His lack of investment or concern about the issue leaves him vulnerable to insiders like Pipes, whose business-first agendas are prepackaged," Green writes. He adds that it is "not outlandish to think that [Giuliani] might make AIDS relief contingent on buying brand-name antiretrovirals" or "levy trade restrictions and financial penalties on countries, like Thailand, that determine the best way to immediately reach the most HIV/AIDS patients is to produce their own antiretrovirals."

Green suggests that all presidential candidates "study the AIDS policy Democrat John Edwards has introduced," adding that the "first move Giuliani should make, though, is to send Pipes back to the sideline and hire some advisers whose values aren't predicated on profit margins" (American Prospect, 11/15).

Cate Edwards Interviewed in the Advocate

See the whole Advocate interview here

Hanging out with new pals at a buzzing Manchester, N.H., tap room, Cate Edwards sounded like any other college student cracking wise over a beer.

Among the topics for debate: Of Jon Stewart's Daily Show interviews, which wins the award for most awkward? By consensus, they picked last month's appearance by Vice President Dick Cheney's wife, Lynne.

It's a typical night at the barroom, and no place for a presidential stump speech. And that suits the daughter of Democratic White House hopeful John Edwards just fine.

''I think it helps to have a young person talk about the issues in a way that's relatable,'' Cate Edwards said. ''I feel more comfortable talking to them, and I think they feel more comfortable talking to me, because I'm not that well polished and because I'm just a regular 25-year-old.''

On her first solo campaign trip through New Hampshire, Edwards tooled around the Granite State on Friday and Saturday in a minivan packed with campaign staff, making the case for her father in the most casual of ways. Her language when discussing policy wasn't always as pristine as that of a candidate. She usually referred to Edwards as ''my dad,'' except when joking that he's ''a hick.''

A second-year Harvard Law School student, Cate Edwards also didn't hesitate to point out that she and her father disagree on some issues. Some are serious, such as same-sex marriage. Others, such as whether he should dance in public, not so much.

''It's not good,'' Cate Edwards joked of her father's dancing. ''It's very dorky. And I don't say that as a politician's daughter, I say that as a daughter. I mean, you just don't want to see your dad do that.''

There were no rallies or town hall meetings on her schedule. Instead, she had coffee with students at a Dartmouth sorority house, drinks at the Manchester bar with other young Democrats, and a gathering with high school students who won't even be old enough to vote next year.

''You get a different perspective,'' said Alyssa Robins, a 22-year-old senior at Dartmouth and president of a sorority that hosted Edwards. ''There's always an uncertainty about how genuine a candidate is when you're always seeing them in a political perspective.

''When you get to hear someone your age talk about the person, in a setting like this, it feels more real,'' Robins said.

Edwards has enlisted friends at Harvard, where she is a volunteer at the university's Legal Aid Bureau representing families facing eviction, to canvass for her father, a former North Carolina senator making his second run for the White House. A Princeton graduate, she appeared at several events this past weekend with Kate Michelman, an Edwards adviser and former head of NARAL Pro-Choice America.

''Cate brings just another whole dimension to this campaign,'' Michelman said. ''The family represents all the different aspects of the issues that they are running on.'

Cate's brother Wade died in 1996 in an automobile accident. Her two younger siblings -- Emma Claire, 9, and Jack, 7 -- are fixtures on the trail and drew a full-fledged media horde when they spent Halloween trick-or-treating with their father in Bedford.

On the GOP side, Mitt Romney's five sons are active participants, blogging as the ''Five Brothers'' and traveling in the ''Mitt Mobile.'' Other children of the candidates are less visible. Rudy Giuliani is estranged from his two children. Chelsea Clinton, the former first daughter who works in New York's financial district, has made some appearances for her mother, New York senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.

During her father's first campaign for president in 2004, Cate Edwards said she held the ''cynical'' belief that young people didn't care about the political process. But she said she discovered that they were eager to participate, but not always included in the process.

''Young people are very interested in what's going on in politics and very interested in the direction of this country,'' Cate Edwards said. ''But one of the problems is that they just don't feel that they have a voice.''

Clinton and Illinois senator Barack Obama are more popular among younger voters than John Edwards, according to several polls. Cate Edwards thinks that's a product of how her father is perceived -- something she sought to fight by sharing stories about her family, from their political discussions over dinner to how she and her mother, Elizabeth, disagree with his opposition to marriage equality.

''One of the things we can do as family is to be character witnesses for our parents and for my dad,'' Cate Edwards said. ''It's really easy to talk to him as a real guy and a regular guy, because he is.''

Generally soft-spoken, Edwards grows most animated when defending her father from critics who suggest that his large house, pricey haircuts, and work at a hedge fund betray his focus on speaking for the less fortunate.

Cate Edwards said her father's advocacy for the poor always has been a central focus of his life. She told the story of how Edwards, when he was still a practicing trial attorney, would raise money through his firm to buy gifts for children from a low-income neighborhood in Raleigh, N.C.

''He always said to us, 'This is really important because we're incredibly lucky, and we've gotten all kinds of blessings and other people haven't. We need to give back,''' Cate Edwards said. ''And that's something he always instilled in us.''

But, as is her style, the story also came with just the right amount of snark about her dad to help connect with voters her own age.

''My dad is a terrible gift-wrapper, so he wasn't really allowed near them,'' she joked. ''He would dress up as Santa Claus, and he makes a terrible Santa Claus -- he's too skinny and too tan.'' (Mike Baker, AP)

A call for full equality

by Sen. Barack Obama
http://www.gaylesbiantimes.com/?id=10906

Over the last several weeks, the question of GLBT equality was placed on center stage by the appearance of Donnie McClurkin at one of my campaign events. McClurkin is a talented performer and a beloved figure among many African Americans and Christians around the country. At the same time, he espouses beliefs about homosexuality that I completely reject.

The events of the last several weeks are not the occasion that I would have chosen to discuss America’s divisions on gay rights and my own deep commitment to GLBT equality. Now that the issue is before us, however, I do not intend to run away from it. These events have provided an important opportunity for us to confront a difficult fact: There are good, decent, moral people in this country who do not yet embrace their gay brothers and sisters as full members of our shared community.

We will not secure full equality for all GLBT Americans until we learn how to address that deep disagreement and move beyond it. To achieve that goal, we must state our beliefs boldly, bring the message of equality to audiences that have not yet accepted it, and listen to what those audiences have to say in return.

For my entire career in public life, I have brought the message of GLBT equality to skeptical audiences as well as friendly ones. No other leading candidate in the race for the Presidency has demonstrated the same commitment to the principle of full equality. I support the full and unqualified repeal of the federal Defense of Marriage Act. While some say we should repeal only part of the law, I believe we should get rid of that statute altogether. Federal law should not discriminate in any way against gay and lesbian couples. I will also fight to repeal the U.S. military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, a law that should never have been passed, and my Defense Department will work with top military leaders to implement that repeal.

As President, I will use the bully pulpit to urge states to treat same-sex couples with full equality in their family and adoption laws. I personally believe that civil unions represent the best way to secure that equal treatment. But I also believe that the federal government should not stand in the way of states that want to decide on their own how best to pursue equality for gay and lesbian couples – whether that means a domestic partnership, a civil union, or a civil marriage. I will also place the weight of my administration behind the enactment of the Matthew Shepard Act to outlaw hate crimes and a fully inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act to outlaw workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. I have supported fully inclusive protections since my days in the Illinois legislature, when I sponsored a bill to outlaw workplace discrimination that expressly included both sexual orientation and gender identity.

That is where I stand on the major issues of the day. But having the right positions on the issues is only half the battle. The other half is to win broad support for those positions. And winning broad support will require stepping outside our comfort zone. If we want to repeal DOMA, repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and implement fully inclusive laws outlawing hate crimes and discrimination in the workplace, we need to bring the message of GLBT equality to people who are not yet convinced.

That’s why I brought this message of inclusiveness to all of America in my keynote address at the 2004 Democratic convention. I reiterated that message in the speech announcing my candidacy for President. Since beginning my campaign, I have been talking about GLBT equality on the stump, from rural farmers to Southern preachers. Just as important, I have been listening to what all Americans have to say in return. I will never compromise on my commitment to equal rights for all GLBT Americans. But neither will I close my ears to the voices of those who still need to be convinced. That is the work that we need to do if we are going to move forward together. It is difficult. It is challenging. And it is necessary.

The American people have been poorly served by two terms of an administration that seeks to manipulate us through fear: fear over national security, fear over immigrants and fear over gay and lesbian couples in loving relationships. Americans are yearning for leadership that will put an end to the fear mongering and instead begin empowering us once again to reach for the America we know is possible. I believe that we can achieve the goal of full equality for the millions of GLBT people in this country. To do that, we need leadership that appeals to the best parts of the human spirit, rather than the worst. Together, we will achieve real equality for all Americans, gay and straight alike.

Biden's Cheap Shot at Giuliani

Joe Biden's presidential campaign, in an attempt to garner some much-needed attention, has been working hard to pick a fight with Rudy Giuliani, but his last attack may have gone to far.

Biden has declared Giuliani unqualified to be present, and recently commented: “there’s only three things he mentions in a sentence: a noun and a verb and 9/11.”

Giuliani has recently been working 9/11 into answers to all sorts of questions, including a recent question about the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The Biden campaign sent out this example to the media along with two other examples. It's a reasonable criticism.

But it an obvious reference to Giuliani's history of performing in drag, the Biden press release ends by stating playfully: "In the spirit of Halloween, Rudy, if the dress fits, wear it.’’

Giuliani has been appearing in drag on and off for the past 10 years, including Inner Circle Press Dinners in 1997 and 2000 and episodes of Saturday Night Live. Giuliani offered once to appear in drag on the Showtime television series Queer as Folk, but that appearance never materialized. All this has not stopped Giuliani from reaching out to right-wing Republicans. Giuliani recently received an endorsement from the founder of the Christian Coalition, Pat Robertson.

The Biden comment, clearly meant to be humorous, marks the first time a presidential candidate has commented on Giuliani's drag performances, and quite frankly, it lowers the debate and takes away from Biden's more substantive criticism. Republican or Democrat, gender identity and expression, much like race, ethnicity, and gender, should never be a factor in which candidate you support. The top tier Democratic candidates would do well to learn from Biden's mistake and avoid these types of attacks.

John Edwards Stands Alone in Campaign Finance Debate

Bloomberg.com has an interesting article online today entitled: Watergate-Era Fundraising Returns With Clinton, Obama, Giuliani. They point out, that for the first time ever, the top contenders for both the Republican and Democratic presidential primaries are opting out of public financing to go after bigger corporate money:

Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have joined Republicans including former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani in declining federal subsidies. Instead, they are raising millions from corporate executives and wealthy supporters, threatening to make 2008 the first election since Richard Nixon won his second term in 1972 in which both parties' nominees will have been completely financed by private sources.

The lack of public financing will magnify the power of lobbyists and other well-connected givers who collect and ``bundle'' donations from their family, friends and associates. Besides enhancing fundraisers' influence in Washington, supporters of campaign limits say, it may also sow the seeds for another massive scandal like Watergate, which drove Nixon from office and shook citizens' faith in their government for a generation.

``The amount of money that's being raised this cycle raises the specter of the presidency going back on the auction block,'' says Meredith McGehee, policy director for the Campaign Legal Center, a Washington group that favors curbs on political donations.

In contrast, Edwards has committed to public financing. Edwards recently told CNN:

"This is not about a money calculation," Edwards told CNN senior political correspondent Candy Crowley on his way to an event in Durham, New Hampshire. "This is about taking a stand, a principled stand, and I believe in public financing."

Gay Republican & HIV/AIDS Advocate Joins Rudy Giuliani Team

The Rudy Guiliani campaign announced on Friday that openly gay Republican Party activist Carl Schmid has joined the Guiliani campaign as a co-chair of the campaign's DC leadership team.

Carl Schmid stated “As Mayor of New York, Rudy Giuliani cut taxes, cut crime, and got hundreds of thousands of people off the welfare rolls and back to work all while working with a heavily Democratic City Council. That’s the kind of strong leadership we need in the White House.”

Schmid, a 2004 delegate to the Republican National Convention, has played an active role in the DC Republican Party, which is not a significant part of local DC politics. When openly gay city council member David Catania left the Republican Party over the federal marriage amendment debate, he left the Party with only one remaining Republican DC city council member.

Schmid currently serves as the Director of Federal Affairs for the AIDS Institute, a national public policy organization.