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UPDATE: Roll call here.
The New York Assembly voted 89 – 52 Tuesday evening to pass a marriage equality bill (A07732). Governor Paterson has vowed to sign the bill if it makes it through the Senate.
Interesting that the NYT story didn’t get into specifics of the roadblocks ahead in the senate, such as our friend Ruben “As long as you need me, there will be no gay marriage” Diaz. Rather, they made much of the smart political maneuvering by the Assembly to facilitate “yes” votes from squeamish senators.
Supporters of the bill aggressively sought new votes, particularly from Assembly members whose districts lie within Senate districts where a senator’s vote is believed to be in play. As a matter of strategy, same-sex marriage advocates said that they hoped to use those votes as a way to leverage support from senators who are worried that supporting the measure could cost them politically.
Much of the strategy was apparently orchestrated by Danny O’Donnell. Excerpts from that story after the flip.
Mr. O’Donnell, the gay older brother of the comedian Rosie O’Donnell, has emerged as a tenacious, ingratiating, playful and sometimes prickly leader of the effort to pass the legislation.He has helped gather nearly 90 votes in the 150-member Assembly… But he is also using the Assembly vote as a way to pressure members of the Senate, where the legislation’s fate will be decided, and demonstrate to wary senators that there is support in their districts for the bill.
Mr. O’Donnell’s unsubtle approach has endeared him to some colleagues in the Capitol and rankled others. While using flattery on certain wavering lawmakers, he has been aggressive with others, threatening to withhold support from fellow Democrats, for example, who declined to be listed as sponsors of the measure.
“Some might say you get more bees from vinegar, sugar than vinegar, whatever that stupid expression is,” said Mr. O’Donnell, who is from the Upper West Side. He added: “If you want to run for attorney general or for governor or lieutenant governor or senator or congressperson, and you’re not in favor of my equality, then I’m not interesting in helping you. And I’ve made that clear.”
No apologies. I like this guy.
Cross-posted at Blue Mass Group.
13 Comments
Shades of Harvey MilkQuid quo pro
To put it bluntly……that’s what politics is all about. Exerting pressure on behalf of a group, by saying “If you support us, we’ll help you this way, this way, and this way. If you betray us, we’ll strike back.” It’s all about clout, and it’s great to have someone on the scene, like O’Donnell, who actually knows how to use it.
I agreeCarrot and the stick means sometimes using the stick.
Indeed, If only HRC got the memo…
Or the Democratic Partyor Democratic voters. Reading the politics of lowered expectations can be very depressing when everyone assumes “we lost” when they have no bothered to try. That’s the scariest part- often they have not even bothered to try, but take their pessimism about progressive causes as fact. 30 years of conservative ascendancy i suppose will do that to you. but at what point do they realize that progressives are in ascendancy? 2020?
Best line of the dayfrom Mr. O’Donnell..
Sorry To Be Off TopicBut does anyone know what’s happening in New Hampshire? I live here and haven’t heard a peep. I was under the impression Gov Lynch had 5 days to sign the marriage equality bill or it would become law without it. Hasn’t it been 5 days now???
Technically slow in getting to the NH Gov’s deskIt’s my understanding that the bill hasn’t technically been on the NH Gov’s desk for five days yet. It has some procedural hurdles to go through (being enrolled, forwarded by the Sec of State, etc.)
But someone who understands NH legislative procedure better than I should respond.
This is exactly how I feel
O’Donnell knicked that from Jamie Raskin, a professor of law at American University, who was testifying before Congress in 2006 against that hateful Marilyn Musgrove’s (my parents’ recently deposed congressperson) proposed marriage amendment to the US Constitution:
http://www.snopes.com/politics…
Roll Call?Can anyone find a complete list of the votes and post the link? As per usual, I can’t find squat on the legislature’s webpages.
see new link at top of post.
All this noiseAnd all this media attention for marriage equality while the Gender Expression Non Discrimination Act (GENDA) sits unnoticed in the Senate’s Investigations and Government Operations Committee. Will New York be like New Hampshire? Will the gender variant people in New York be thrown under the bus again, the way we were in 2002?
The jury is still out on those questions but it sure feels as if we are being held over the spinning wheels of a large bus waiting for the drop.
I’ve emailed Senators Malcolm Smith and Thomas Duane (masmith@senate.state.ny.us, duane@senate.state.ny.us), along with the members of the Senate’s Investigations and Government Operations Committee (johnson@senate.state.ny.us, diaz@senate.state.ny.us, espada@senate.state.ny.us, golden@senate.state.ny.us, klein@senate.state.ny.us, nozzolio@senate.state.ny.us, stachows@senate.state.ny.us, winner@senate.state.ny.us) asking them not to forget GENDA amid the furor over civil marriage equality and to pass both bills. I hope I’m not the only voice they hear.