News, analysis and fact-checking of anti-gay rhetoric
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The FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics aren’t as complete as they ought to be, and their report for 2004 was no exception. In fact, their most recent report has quite a few glaring holes. Holes big enough for Daniel Fetty to fall through.NOM’s mininalist definition of victory
Timothy Kincaid
March 21st, 2012
CNN’s Thomas Roberts (who is gay) interviewed Brian Brown, the National Organization for Marriage’s President, and Craig Stowell, the Republican co-chair of Stand Up for New Hampshire Families (our side), about the expected vote today in the New Hampshire House of Representatives.
Brown gave his usual posturing and nonsense.
(Segue alert: don’t you get tired of talking heads saying the same nonsense over and over regardless of the situation? I laughed out loud this week when Brooke on Dancing With the Has-Beens asked Martina Navratalova about her scores. Instead of the standard “we are really pleased, we went out and gave it our best and had a lot of fun, so we hope America votes for us” that every other contestant said, Navratalova said, “oh, it was the same score we got in rehearsals so I guess it is what it is.” Back to the topic.)
He laughably ranted about “special interest groups from out of state” (leaving the New Hampshirite the opportunity to point out that Brian isn’t a local boy) and claimed that 119 legislators were “booted out because they took it upon themselves to redefine marriage” (a notion scoffed at by the Republican leaders who ignored the issue for a year and a half because “we were elected to address the economy”).
But here’s the sentence you need to pay attention to.
“We’re looking forward to the vote today. I expect we’re going to have a majority here. I think it’s going to be historic to have a state vote and have a majority vote say, “this was wrong, we made a tragic mistake two years ago and we’re going to right that wrong” and I expect that we’re going to see a victory today.”
NOM’s definition of success is “a majority”. And, mind you, this for a bill that would simply revert to full civil union protections.
In terms of actual impact, if NOM eeks out “a majority”, we win. Governor Lynch will veto the bill (assuming it survives the Senate) and NOM will scramble to try and find enough votes to overturn the veto.
Keep in mind that Republicans have a veto-proof majority. If this is a party-line vote, then marriage equality would be reversed in that state. But Brown has conceded that NOM isn’t expecting a veto-proof majority. They aren’t expecting to win, they are just laying the framework to argue that a vote in which they lose all Democrats and a large number of Republicans and which will never become law is “historic”.
The vote has not yet happened. And in politics anything can happen. But NOM’s admission suggests that the vote today will be good news.
I can feel pity for Brian Brown. Surely it cuts at one’s sense of being to constantly spin and lie and pretend. When one goes into quiet contemplation, surely “winning” seems little consolation for giving up your integrity, and when you aren’t winning it must seem like an unfair trade. If you sell your soul, shouldn’t you at least get something for it?
As Thomas asked him,
Brian… what the National Organization of Marriage does to try and stand against the tide of equality, isn’t it exhausting?
homer
March 21st, 2012 | LINK
You actually have to have a soul to have feelings, and Brian Brown doesn’t seem to have either.
Rev. Karen
March 21st, 2012 | LINK
Churches cannot follow the law of the land because of their “religous beliefs?”
Romans 13
“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.”
So, the Churches who feel themselves above the Law are, in fact, defying the very same bible they are using to defend their criminality.
You can’t have it both ways.
Matt
March 21st, 2012 | LINK
I wonder what Brown has to say now that this bill just bit the dust big-time.
Rich
March 21st, 2012 | LINK
I think you mean MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts, not CNN’s.
As a Californian, it’s pretty rich to hear Brown going on about out of state special interests coming in to tell the people of a state how to define marriage.
Meadowlark
March 22nd, 2012 | LINK
I really like the part of this clip where, over on the right, there’s a tiny picture of Brown’s head droning on and on and on, while on the left there are big images of same-sex couples, old and young, happily getting married. It doesn’t matter what he said–it’s completely overwhelmed by the joyful images. Bye bye, Brian, go off and enjoy your “victory”!
Hunter
March 22nd, 2012 | LINK
What makes you think that Brown spends any time in “quiet contemplation”? If he ever took a good look at what inside himself — well, I can’t guess what his reaction might be.
I don’t have that problem. But then, I don’t lie for a living.
Reed
March 22nd, 2012 | LINK
Brown mentions “the folks from Cornerstone.” Hmmmm. Would that be one of the many Cornerstone churches, such as the one headed by John Hagee in San Antonio, TX?
And I just love Thomas Roberts last comment: “I saw the movie ‘Bully’ last night. I recommend you look at it.”
Timothy Kincaid
March 22nd, 2012 | LINK
Reed, it’s the local conservative religious advocacy group.
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