Category Archives: Congress

The Fair Housing rush: Three bills now pending

Three U.S. representatives have introduced separate bills in the past week designed to protect LGBT people from discrimination in housing. The flurry of interest comes when more popular LGBT bills are still awaiting critical votes and during an election year

Grilling of 9th circuit nominee delayed

The Senate Judiciary Committee was squaring up for a showdown this week over President Obama’s most controversial judicial nominee to date, but that showdown has been indefinitely delayed, while Republicans use a parliamentary delaying tactic on the companion bill to

No gay provisions in health care

Rep. Tammy Baldwin acknowledged that the pro-gay provisions she sought in the health care reform legislation have not survived. But Baldwin also said that she has counted the votes in the House on two major pro-gay pieces of legislation and

Rep. Frank: ENDA will get House vote this month

Legislation can be like a train: It runs on a track, makes certain stops along the way, and is often attached to other trains. But, in Congress, the train doesn’t run on time. Last October, Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) said the

Feldblum confirmation on secret hold for now

At least one senator has put a secret hold on the confirmation of openly gay law professor Chai Feldblum and four others to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

Gates, Mullen ready to repeal DADT, but GOP ready to fight

Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen told a Senate committee they have appointed a high-level working group to report on how the military can adapt should Congress choose to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t

The state of the new landscape in the Senate doesn’t kill chances

Scott Brown's special election victory this month, taking the late Ted Kennedy's Senate seat, could have the power to derail passage of pro-gay civil rights legislation this year.

U.S. Reps call for action against Ugandan bill

Three openly gay members of the U.S. House of Representatives, along with 91 of their colleagues, have sent a letter to President Obama urging him to do everything he can to stop a bill in Uganda that calls for harsh

Frank says LGBT still have chance in health reform bill

News on Capitol Hill Wednesday morning suggested there was little hope for keeping pro-LGBT provisions in the health care reform legislation Congress hopes to pass. But Rep. Barney Frank says he’s still “somewhat optimistic.”

Health reform: Gay provisions likely to be lost in conference

It’s still a little bit of a guessing game as to whether the U.S. Senate will pass a health care reform bill this month or next or never, but if and when it does, there’s little likelihood any pro-gay provisions