Barney Frank

Barney Frank: America On The Verge Of Marriage Equality 'Within 10 Years'

Sahil Kapur | May 10, 2012, 6:15AM

Longtime Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), the first member of Congress to reveal himself to be gay, told TPM he was very happy to see President Obama endorse same-sex marriage, but characterized the move as a political no-brainer that would have little impact on the 2012 election.

"I do not think anybody is going to switch his or her opinion on him because of this," Frank said shortly after Obama's announcement Wednesday afternoon. "I believe that if you are someone who was going to be so influenced by your position on same-sex marriage, then you would already be against Obama before this, because of his position on [the Defense of Marriage Act]."

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Andrew Cuomo

New York Judge OKs Lawsuit To Repeal Marriage Equality Law

Jillian Rayfield | November 30, 2011, 5:52AM

A state Supreme Court judge in New York will allow a lawsuit against the state's marriage equality law to move forward, citing concerns about whether officials broke the state's open meetings law in the lead-up to the vote last June.

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Eric Schneiderman

New York AG Asks Court To Throw Out Anti-Gay Marriage Suit

Jillian Rayfield | September 19, 2011, 1:03PM

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has asked a state court to toss a lawsuit challenging New York's marriage equality law, which was signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo back in June.

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New Jersey

Poll: Plurality Of New Jersey Voters Thinks Gay Marriage Should Be Legal

Jillian Rayfield | August 3, 2011, 6:00AM

Pro Same-Sex Marriage Parade, Maplewood, NJ

Gay marriage is not likely to become legal in New Jersey as long as Chris Christie is running things, but according to a recent poll, more New Jersey voters would support marriage equality than would not.

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Gay Marriage

NJ Same-Sex Couples File Lawsuit For Marriage Equality

Jillian Rayfield | June 29, 2011, 5:10PM

Pro Same-Sex Marriage Parade, Maplewood, NJ

The New Jersey gay advocacy group Garden State Equality and seven same-sex couples and their children filed suit Wednesday, arguing that same-sex marriages should be recognized by the state.

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Barack Obama

Obama Dodges On Personal View Of Gay Marriage: 'Not Going To Make News On That Today'

Jillian Rayfield | June 29, 2011, 1:26PM

In his Wednesday press conference, President Obama dodged a question about whether he personally supports same-sex marriage: "I'm not going to make news on that today -- good try though."

Obama also wouldn't say whether he thinks marriage is a civil right, instead characterizing it as a state level issue: "What you saw was the people of New York having a debate, talking through these issues. It was contentious, it was emotional, but ultimately they made a decision to recognize civil marriages. And I think that's exactly how things should work."

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New York

New York State Senate Passes Marriage Equality Bill

Jillian Rayfield | June 24, 2011, 10:34PM

The New York state Senate has approved the marriage equality bill by a vote of 33-29.

An amendment to the bill, which carved out exemptions for religious groups, passed by a vote of 36-26.

[TPM SLIDESHOW: NYC Celebrates After Marriage Equality Passes The State Senate]

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Gay Marriage

New York State Senate Voting On Marriage Equality Friday Night

Jillian Rayfield | June 24, 2011, 5:59PM

New York's marriage equality bill will come up for a vote in the state Senate Friday night, after lawmakers reached a deal on the final language of the bill earlier in the day.

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New York

Still No Deal In New York's Fight Over Marriage Equality

Jillian Rayfield | June 23, 2011, 6:55AM

Leaders of the New York legislature have not yet reached a deal on the final language of the state's marriage equality bill, nor has there been a decision about bringing the legislation up for a vote.

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D) said today that though there are some amendments to the bill that address the Republicans' concerns over religious exemptions, "there's no final agreement on exact language."

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James Alesi

Pro-Gay Marriage NY Lawmaker: 'I'm A Republican -- I Was Born That Way'

Jillian Rayfield | June 21, 2011, 3:34PM

State Sen. James Alesi (R-NY)

Though no deal has been reached yet in the fight over the New York marriage equality bill, there's one Republican state Senator who's dropped his poker face.

James Alesi told a crowd in Albany Tuesday that he's supporting the bill, adding: "I'm a Republican -- I was born that way."

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New York

New York Same Sex Marriage Vote Likely Delayed

Jillian Rayfield | June 20, 2011, 3:25PM

The New York state Senate will likely push the vote on marriage equality to later this week, as Republicans continue to negotiate with supporters of the bill over its language.

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New Jersey

New Jersey Assemblyman Introduces Marriage Equality Bill

Jillian Rayfield | June 20, 2011, 1:54PM

Pro Same-Sex Marriage Parade, Maplewood, NJ

On the heels of the big marriage equality fight in New York, a New Jersey Democrat has introduced a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in the state.

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Andrew Cuomo

Down To The Wire On Marriage Equality In New York

Jillian Rayfield | June 20, 2011, 10:18AM

The New York legislature entered its final day of the session Monday, with lawmakers and gay rights advocates continuing to pursue a deal to pass marriage equality legislation in the state Senate.

The New York Post reports that Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos (R) are closing in on a deal to get the legislation passed. The Senate Republicans had still not decided whether to bring the legislation up for a vote at the end of last week, as some in the caucus pushed for more specific exemptions for religious groups.

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Andrew Cuomo

Behind Scenes, NY Advocacy Groups Fight For Same-Sex Marriage

Michael R. Corjulo | June 17, 2011, 1:37PM

The fate of a much-anticipated bill legalizing same-sex marriage in New York remains uncertain, with the state Senate having yet to act on the measure as of early Friday afternoon.

No matter the result, a vote will mark the end of months of political positioning by Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) and legislative leaders, who have been working to secure enough support to pass the legislation.

The marriage-equality bill has considerably more momentum on its side than it did in 2009, when it passed the Assembly but fell in the Senate by a vote of 38 to 24.

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