My good pal Tickle_b (you’ve seen her in my Blunt videos) has written a piece over at The Mohave Left defending candidate Rodney Glassman against claims that he made an anti-gay remark.

She would like to share it with us here:

It has been said that Rodney stated he wouldn’t want to sit next to a gay person. This is a lie! His remark has been taken out of context. Rodney never said he didn’t want to sit next to a gay person.

This is a smear campaign by fellow Dems who are going to have to come together after the primaries. It’s sad that Parraz and Dougherty felt they had to stoop to this level instead of running on their own merits because both are viable candidates. 

I will be voting for Glassman. He is the only one who has not felt the need to attack a fellow Democrat in order to win a spot on the November ballot. Furthermore I believe he will beat John McCain and take our voices to Washington.

That Three Sonorans guy is the one who first ‘uncovered’ this dubious story and is trying to push his anti-Glassman, pro-Parraz agenda (Parraz being one of the other candidates for Senate)

Also from the “Progressive Electorate” dated Aug. 7 2010

Glassman Responds to Anti-LGBT Accusations

Fri, 08/06/2010
By Barbara McCullough-Jones

A couple days ago I sent Rodney Glassman an email asking about two issues important to Arizona’s LGBT community.  Unedited and without commentary here are Rodney’s responses.

Arizona Progress:    I want to follow-up directly with you about a couple important issues.  While your positions on several issues are clear – two are not.  I’m hoping you will take this opportunity to address them directly and clearly for our readers.

1.  You have had several opportunities to specifically address [the LGBT community] about your support or lack thereof for marriage equality.  Several reports indicate you oppose marriage equality for religious reasons.  Can you please explain  your position?

2.  What specifically are you doing to change the boy Scouts “no gay, no way” policy since you are closely aligned with that organization?

Here’s your opportunity, Rodney to speak to us directly in your own words.  Don’t be shy.

Rodney Glassman:  In response to your questions:

1.       I was pleased to be endorsed by Equality Arizona and the Tucson Observer in 2007 because of my track-record on Equality. I am proud to again be endorsed by the Tucson Observer for U.S. Senate this year. My track-record on equality speaks for itself having donated and volunteered during the No on 107 (2006), No on 102 (2008) and having voted in favor of LGBT policies and supported the LGBT commission as a member of the City Council.

Equality means that every couple should have the right to be a legal couple, with the same rights and benefits that my wife Sasha and I have. If government is going to provide couples with rights and benefits it must provide equal benefits and rights to all couples. That was the ruling by the California judge in the Prop 8 case in California and the ruling is consistent with my position that the most important eight letter word for all Arizonans is Equality.This is an equal rights issue, an equal protection issue, and therefore, a Federal issue.

This is my excerpt from my recent Echo Magazine interview you can read online:

LGBT ISSUES: In mid-July, Glassman was attacked for saying that marriage belongs to religion. The inference was that gays, lesbians and atheists should not have the right to marry.

He said the characterization is wrong.

“I have a strong relationship with the LGBT community, and I’m proud of that,” Glassman said. He said that gay marriage, repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act and Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act boil down to one word: Equality.

Glassman said the “marriage” vs. “civil unions” argument is based on how the Republican Party has defined the debate to create a wedge issue to divide people. “We should not allow anyone, any political party get in the way of equality.”

2.       As a member of the local Boy Scout Council board I consistently voice my opinion that all boys and young men should be afforded the opportunity to participate in Scouting activities. Additionally, I have made a concerted effort to participate and support other LGBT youth serving programs in our community through the Southern Arizona Aids Foundation and other non-profits that are inclusive.

In summary, I plan to be the U.S. Senator from Arizona who works to repeal DADT, repeal DOMA, and pass ENDA, and ensure that all couples have the right to be legal couples (which the courts are examining now).

You know my voting record, my contribution record, and my track record on these issues and I hope you will share them with your friends, family, and readers.

As Democrats this campaign must remain focused on  jobs, education, and immigration reform to beat John McCain this November.

That said, as the ONLY candidate running with a voting record on LGBT issues, I am proud of that record and you know you can count on me as your next U.S. Senator. I hope I can count on your vote.

Your Friend,

Rodney

Now if you read anything smearing Glassman, chances are darn good that it came from the The Three Sonorans
It seems their purpose is to promote Randy Parraz and smear Rodney Glassman. Not very journalistic if you ask me. In fact it’s going to add more rips in the Democratic fabric. It’s very sad. There’s nothing better than a strong spirited race. But please! Don’t make accusations about people with out real solid proof. Remember we are in the same fight! We have to come out of this united.

No matter how frustrated we get with President Obama, just remember this guy could have been in charge right now. Via Heather.

Hmmm, not sure how I feel about this. I mean it seems all democratic, but if you had surveyed the soldiers back in the 60′s, do you think they answers would have been that enlightened about race? Or have things really changed enough for it not to matter?

(CNN) –The Pentagon on Wednesday began sending out to troops a survey of more than 100 questions seeking their views on the impact of repealing the “don’t ask, don’t tell” restrictions prohibiting gays and lesbians from openly serving in the U.S. military.

An administration official confirmed to CNN that the survey is being sent to 200,000 active duty troops and 200,000 reserve troops. The official declined to be identified because the survey has not officially been made public.

The survey, which servicemembers can expect to receive via e-mail, asks about such issues as how unit morale or readiness might be affected if a commander is believed to be gay or lesbian; the need to maintain personal standards of conduct; and how repeal might affect willingness to serve in the military.

The survey also asks a number of questions aimed at identifying problems that could occur when troops live and work in close quarters overseas in war zones. For example, the questionnaire asks military members how they would react if they had to share a room, bathrooms, and open-bay showers in a war zone with other service members believed to be gay or lesbian.

Dowd actually makes a compelling argument. Wonders never cease.

Wow, wonder if the White House got the heads up on this? Would explain the seemingly out of nowhere announcement about DADT. I can’t get the graph set up correctly, but since 2007 the percentage of people who think they should be able to serve openly hovers between 78-81%. PDF here.

Featuring The President Who Almost Was pandering to the Fundies. Actually, this is the part that stuck out to me (starts about 1:00)- “Alot of people point to militaries who allow homosexuality within the ranks. There’s 25 out of almost 200 nations, but the top militaries in the world do not allow homosexuality to be openly engaged in the military.” Wow, dare you to say that to the UK, Russian, French & Israeli armies there Tony. Audio via Think Progress.

Transcript here.

Power hungry brown shirts. This whole thing stinks of them being pissed because she didn’t acquiesce to their demands. I hope they lose everything. Petty bastards.

Jene Newsome played by the rules as an Air Force sergeant: She never told anyone in the military she was a lesbian. The 28-year-old’s honorable discharge under the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy came only after police officers in Rapid City, S.D., saw an Iowa marriage certificate in her home and told the nearby Ellsworth Air Force Base.

Newsome and the American Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint against the western South Dakota police department, claiming the officers violated her privacy when they informed the military about her sexual orientation. The case also highlights concerns over the ability of third parties to “out” service members, especially as the Pentagon has started reviewing the 1993 “don’t ask, don’t tell” law.

“I played by ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’” Newsome told The Associated Press by telephone.

“I just don’t agree with what the Rapid City police department did. … They violated a lot of internal policies on their end, and I feel like my privacy was violated.”

(snip)

The Rapid City Police Department says Newsome, an aircraft armament system craftsman who spent nine years in the Air Force, was not cooperative when they showed up at her home in November with an arrest warrant for her partner, who was wanted on theft charges in Fairbanks, Alaska.

Newsome was at work at the base at the time and refused to immediately come home and assist the officers in finding her partner, whom she married in Iowa – where gay marriage is legal – in October.

Police officers, who said they spotted the marriage license on the kitchen table through a window of Newsome’s home, alerted the base, police Chief Steve Allender said in a statement sent to the AP. The license was relevant to the investigation because it showed both the relationship and residency of the two women, he said.

“It’s an emotional issue and it’s unfortunate that Newsome lost her job, but I disagree with the notion that our department might be expected to ignore the license, or not document the license, or withhold it from the Air Force once we did know about it,” Allender said Saturday. “It was a part of the case, part of the report and the Air Force was privileged to the information.”

Theft? Wanted on a no immediate threat type crime? The fracking woman was at work, and you want her there now? If the person you’re looking for isn’t there, why don’t YOU come back at a time the person whose cooperation you want finds convenient?

Click to enlarge, via.

Why they would trust Joe with something this important is beyond me. Hell, his BFF McCain isn’t even behind it anymore. Via Taegan-

“Just when you thought Joe Lieberman couldn’t frustrate and perplex liberals any further, he is going off to become chief sponsor of the most significant piece of socially progressive legislation that Congress will deal with this year,” reports the New York Daily News.

“Next week, the Connecticut senator will announce that he’s taking the lead on repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, the 1993 law that prohibits gay people from serving openly in the armed forces. Since implementation of the statute nearly 20 years ago, the military has discharged some 14,000 qualified men and women, many of them serving in critical jobs like Arabic and Persian translation.”

**Apparently I’m not the only one who thinks this is a bad idea.