A political move on Maggie’s part? The show must go on!
Last evening I attended this Forum organized by Todd Plank:
Married or Not?
Understanding the Martinez Marriage Decision & Appeal Process
The panelists included Todd Plank, Gary Pudup, Jeffrey Wicks, Matt Aiella, Lisa Golden and Pat Martinez.
We’ve discussed this issue many times in the last few weeks-here, here, and here for a start. Now it’s time to understand what’s really going on.
Jeff Wicks gave us a brief rundown on the law leading up to the Martinez decision. That information can be found here. Now, it should be noted, that DOMA does not apply here. DOMA was passed in 35 states. New York was not one of them. And, I must claim ignorance here, I did not realize that DOMA was passed in 1996, under the Clinton administration, where Bill Clinton threw LGBTs under the bus and decided that it wasn’t the Federal Government’s responsibility to recognize same sex marriages and gave it back to the states.
Enter Lisa Golden and Pat Martinez. Pat and Lisa were married in Canada in 2004. When Pat tried to put Lisa on her Health Insurance plan where she worked at MCC, the Union told her that she could not:
Their union, legally consecrated in Canada in 2004, was not immediately accepted by Martinez’s employer, Monroe Community College. In 2005, she sued to get health care benefits for Golden. On Feb. 1, a court ruled in her favor.
[snip]
The ruling said Monroe County Community College (MCC) had no right to deny the couple insurance benefits which were granted to other married couples.
Now, apparently MCC does provide DP benefits, which would make it seem that Ms Brooks and the Republican Legislature are talking out of both sides of their mouths when statements like these are made:
Brooks called the Martinez victory “a clear misinterpretation of the law.” Her statement concludes: “To expand (health care) benefits to same-sex couples is to ignore the will of the people of Monroe County and New York state. Therefore, the county is seeking an appeal of the recent ruling in this case.”
[snip]
this could set up a very expensive legal precedent that impacts not just government as an employer, but every employer…every entity that provides benefits across this state.”
So, what’s really happening here? Could it be that Brooks and Minarik are appealing to their Conservative base? From channel 13, WHAM:
Martinez’s lawyer Jeffrey Wicks sees the appeal as nothing but political.
“My sense is that their conservative, Republican base is screaming, ‘Appeal this!’ …and that, in my view, is why the county is appealing this, not because of any legal considerations,” Wicks said.
Could they just be appealing to that Republican/Conservative base who fuels the war chest? The same base that they appeal to with their COMIDA benefits, the Library Porn Issue, the Public Defender Debacle? Follow the money and I don’t think we’ll have to look any farther. I doubt that they believe that they will win this appeal-just going through the motions. It’s all show. And, really, Maggie, I think tap dance-lessons would be cheaper.
)
An exceptional report and perspective. You are probably truly onto something with your thinking, which makes the picture even more sad.
it is a political move, no doubt. i mentioned that when i spoke at the county leg meeting. it is the advantage of incumbency, i guess. you get to push your political agenda on taxpayers’ money.
Yup, it’s something that Randy Kuhl does all the time. The Repos in this state are sooooo good at it. Ahhh, the benefits of incumbancy and an uninformed constituency.
But, we’re here to change all that!
unfortunately we can’t change it all. after all, offficials do need to connect with their constituents. but i like your point on the uninformed constituency. because if they are informed they can look at this type of bs critically and read between the lines and come to the conclusions we often do, that half of what these hacks do is smoke and mirror pandering.
Well to be honest, both sides can accomplish the goal, i.e. DOMA…however, defaulting or punting to the states hardly compares to complete denial and discrimination and violations of constitutional rights on both the federal and state levels.
You’re right, they don’t compare, but I think it sad, none-the-less, that a Democratic President was responsible, when he had the opportunity to take the hight road-alas, the great compromiser.
There are mixed feelings about the Clintons in the community because of this and their implemeting of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy for the military.
The Clintons had the opportunity to make things right in the military and they didn’t do it.
Recall that integration got a big boost when Truman integrated the military. It was unpopular at first but Harry stuck to it.
It’s hard to fight next to someone different than youself and then discriminate against them at home.
It’s hard to fight next to someone different than youself and then discriminate against them at home.
Excellent point!
i think in regards to civil rights, punting to the states is a dangerous cop out. although states’ rights are important, it is the same logic that ket jim crow around for so long.
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