Fending off the homosexualist wolves, a White House source says that Obama will exercise all available presidential authority to extend benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees.
-- From "U.S. to Extend Its Job Benefits to Gay Partners" by Jeff Zeleny, New York Times 6/16/09
Mr. Obama is expected to announce, in the Oval Office, the details about which benefits would be provided. It is the highest-profile statement he has made on gay issues, and it comes as he faces intense criticism from several gay-rights leaders over what they suggest has been a failure to live up to campaign promises in the first months of his presidency.
Mr. Obama will be weighing in for the first time on one of the most sensitive social and political issues of the day: whether the government must provide benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees. While he will announce a list of benefits, officials said, they are not expected to include broad health insurance coverage, which could require legislation to achieve.
As a presidential candidate, Mr. Obama vowed to “fight hard” for the rights of gay couples. As a senator, he sponsored legislation that would have provided health benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees. But since becoming president five months ago, Mr. Obama has not addressed the issue or whether gays can serve openly in the military, a point of contention for gay-rights groups.
Joe Solmonese, the president of the Human Rights Campaign, wrote an angry letterto the White House on Monday about the administration’s move to file a legal brief supporting the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act.
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