Leaving Democrats and into the arms of... ?

Some sources say the only group that has shown more loyalty to the Democratic Party than gays has been African Americans. Others say that we are the most reliable -- 70% of gays vote and 70% of gay voters vote Democratic. Yet, at least on the national level, what do we have to show for or time, money, effort, and loyalty? Law makers who are still spooked by the Fundies. Many checkbook activists are now donating only to candidates with a proven track record and not to the party as a whole.

The immediate answer as to why is the awful DOMA brief that I wrote about a couple days ago. But let's take a step back.

The GOP wooed religious conservatives promising everything and saying, "If you don't vote for us the Dems will be in power and they don't like you." But the GOP never delivered (and we're glad they didn't) and poisoned the public debate in the process.

Meanwhile Dems have been telling gays, "If you don't vote for us the GOP will stay in power and they don't like you." One way to keep us tied to the Dems is to not actually deliver on their promises. In the big Democratic coalition gays are unique in that when they come out we frequently have to construct new social supports -- we know we don't need what supported us in our youth. Perhaps we don't need the Dems anymore either.

The Dems now face a big problem. Not everyone in the Dem big tent likes gays. Doing things for gays might drive away other factions -- into the waiting arms of the GOP. Thus the Dems are looking to do the minimum to keep gays happy.

Are both major parties due for a realignment? Is this a way of saying a two-party system doesn't work? Some wonder if the Dems are the party of doing the minimum to keep voters happy. What's the minimum health care package we can pass and still win in 2010? What's the minimum number of troops we can withdraw from Iraq?

Here's another take on the gay / Democrat divorce. Unlike the GOP, the Dems have never had a purity test for membership (I hope you've figured out by now what the membership purity test for the GOP is. This reader claims it is married white Christian males). However, that means not all members of the Dem big tent are willing to help gays. Gays and Dems formed a relationship because many gays forgot that equality isn't a partisan issue. That's understandable because the GOP loudly announced how much they were against gay equality. But Dems, due to the nature of the big tent, will only do for us what they absolutely have to.

So keep pressuring the Dems. Also pressure the GOP -- we wouldn't have gotten gay marriage in nearly all of New England without the support of GOP lawmakers.

Obama's and Congress's inaction has led to calls to close the gayATM (now with a logo: gAyTM). Some gay activists are afraid that gays near the halls of power will want to retain access through continued giving, dismissing the rest of us as not knowing how Washington works.

The number of prominent voices who have pulled out of Joe Biden's LGBT fundraiser has left the White House scrambling (and stumbling). Which has led to an observation: Our voice is our wallet.

Now that our revolution is underway how might we urge it along? The comments in this posting offers suggestions. Perhaps fire employees for being straight? They're not protected anymore than gays are. One commenter offers this suggestion: One each of a gay couple and a lesbian couple, both couples legally married in another state, go for a marriage license. When the clerk asks if they are already married they say they are, but it shouldn't matter because this state doesn't recognize it. The tagline in a rejoinder says, "Marriage equality. Now with 50% more cake."