So even though the Maine results are depressing, let's look at some real progress over at the western part of the country:

Washington state voters have approved Referendum 71, keeping a law that expands state benefits for registered same-sex and some senior domestic partners.

The tally Thursday afternoon saw the vote to approve R-71 widening its lead 52.5 percent to 47.5 percent.

That lead now appears insurmountable. The Secretary of State's Office estimates another 500,000 to 600,000 ballots statewide are still outstanding, with about half expected from King County, where the measure is being approved by slightly more than 2 to 1.

"Voters across the state listened to the personal stories of lesbian and gay families and the challenges they faced and sent a strong message that we want to see all families treated equally under the law in our state," said Anne Levinson, chairwoman of Washington Families Standing Together, which worked for the measure's approval.

But opponents of R-71 were not conceding Thursday afternoon.

Larry Stickney, head of Protect Marriage Washington, which worked for rejection of R-71, said: "There are a lot of votes out there still. We continue to have some hope that the votes cast later will move in our direction."

From The Colbert Report:

The petition signers who want to overturn the "everything but marriage" bill should be able to stay in the closet that the gay people have abandoned.

Philly2Philly: This post is from June, but we thought the White House needed a reminder that Fox News won the right to LIE TO THE PUBLIC in a 2003 appellate court decision.

Gin and Tacos: Wall Street is Too Clever by Half.

Race Wire: “Progressive” cities aren’t red or blue, but another color entirely: white.

If you haven't heard Philip Spooner's wonderful speech on marriage equality yet, don't miss it.

Tom Dispatch: We can win in Afghanistan with 10 years of $5 billion a month. No, really.

David Shuster reporting that David Vitter is refusing to comment on the justice who refused to marry an interracial couple in Louisiana. Shuster wonders if the Senator is worried about losing support from his base.

From Think Progress- Vitter dodges question about interracial marriage in Louisiana.:

Although both Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) and Sen. Mary Landrieu (D) have publicly condemned Justice of the Peace Keith Bardwell for refusing to issue marriage licenses to interracial couples, Sen. David Vitter (R) has stayed noticeably silent. (ThinkProgress contacted his office, but we did not receive a response.) Blogger-activist Mike Stark caught up with Vitter and asked him about his position. “Have you commented? What did you have to say about it?” asked Stark. Vitter simply smiled, stepped into the elevator, and allowed the doors to close.

Update: Greg Sargent finally received a response from Vitter's spokesman, but the senator still refuses to condemn Bardwell's actions: "First, Sen. Vitter thinks that all judges should follow the law as written and not make it up as they go along. Second, it would be amazing for anyone to do a story based on this fringe, left-wing political hack’s blog — he’s been handcuffed and detained in the past over his guerrilla tactics."

Shuster said MSNBC called Vitter's office three times asking if the Senator supported the statements by the justice and that they would still not comment.

Nope, no racism to see here. Nothing to see...move along now. Unbelievable. What year does this guy think he's living in? Now that the couple is married the good judge doesn't think he's done any harm.

From CBS News:

The Louisiana Justice of the Peace who refused to marry an interracial couple said on "The Early Show" he doesn't see what the problem is with what he did now, because the couple is already married.

"I'm sorry, you know, that I offended the couple, but I did help them and tell them who to go to and to get married," he said. "And they went and got married, and they should be happily married, and I don't see what the problem is now."

Keith Bardwell, a white justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish in southeastern Louisiana, wouldn't issue a license to or preside over the nuptials for Beth Humphrey, who is white, and Terence McKay, of Hammond, La., who is black.

The two were later married by another area justice of the peace.

Bardwell, who's held his post more than 30 years, said he refused to perform the ceremony because of his concern for the future of the couple's children.

Bardwell told "Early Show" co-anchor Harry Smith, "I've had countless numbers of people that was born in that situation, and that they claim that the blacks or the whites didn't accept the children. And I didn't want to put the children in that position."

Bardwell also said he does not issue marriage licenses, he just performs the ceremonies.

"I recused myself of performing the ceremony. A judge is legally -- can recuse himself of hearing a case or marrying people," he said.

However, according to Humphrey, Bardwell wouldn't issue them a marriage license. Humphrey says she initially spoke to Bardwell's wife, who said her husband would not issue the license because they are an interracial couple.

Humphrey said, "I was just completely shocked. I had no words."

McKay added, "He's not going to marry us because your black, and I'm white. ... It's 2009."

Bardwell denied on "The Early Show" that he broke any laws.

"The law says that I cannot deny mixed race marriages," he said. "And that means prevent them from getting married. And I did not prevent them getting married."

But would Bardwell refuse anyone else a marriage ceremony?

Initially, he said he would not refuse a couple on any other grounds, but then corrected himself, saying, for example, he would refuse to marry a couple if one -- or both of them -- was intoxicated.

"I can recuse myself and tell them to come back when they're sober," he said. "That's legal."

What decade are these people living in, anyway?

A Louisiana justice of the peace said he refused to issue a marriage license to an interracial couple out of concern for any children the couple might have.

Keith Bardwell, justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish, says it is his experience that most interracial marriages do not last long.

Neither Bardwell nor the couple immediately returned phone calls from The Associated Press. But Bardwell told the Daily Star of Hammond that he was not a racist.

"I do ceremonies for black couples right here in my house," Bardwell said. "My main concern is for the children."

Bardwell said he has discussed the topic with blacks and whites, along with witnessing some interracial marriages. He came to the conclusion that most of black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society, he said.

"I don't do interracial marriages because I don't want to put children in a situation they didn't bring on themselves," Bardwell said. "In my heart, I feel the children will later suffer."

If he does an interracial marriage for one couple, he must do the same for all, he said.

"I try to treat everyone equally," he said.

Yeah, he's a regular humanitarian. Not sure if this guy is up on his history or legal precedents but Loving v. Virginia made this kind of government interference illegal in 1967.

He might think he's not racist, but he sure as hell is being bigoted and needs to step down. As you might expect, the ACLU has picked up this case and will pursue it for the couple.

In 19 days we will know whether we beat back NOM and the Catholic Dioceses and protected marriage equality for Mainers, or took yet another step backwards at the ballot box for equality. 30 states have had votes on marriage equality since 1998 and the right-win has won in all 30 of them. We are going to stop that streak in Maine, but we can't do it without the resources to fuel a massive get-out-the-vote operation.

Today at midnight is the last major financial reporting deadline and it also marks the first day of early voting. If you were planning on giving to No on 1 and haven't yet, or have the resources to give again, today is the day to do it. Luckily, we at Blue America have a little sweetener, courtesy of Howie:

Meanwhile we have something nice to offer to donors today. The first 9 people who kick in at least $30 at the Blue America '10 page each wins a special DVD of Barbra Streisand's spectacular 1966 television special Color Me Barbra (which includes a rare poster). And if that wasn't fabulous enough, we also have something pretty mind-blowing for the person who donates the most by 6AM (PT) tomorrow. The picture is above. It's a gorgeous Joan Osborne RIAA custom double platinum award for both Relish and "One of Us." It's rare, collectible, unique and... well, what a gift it would make for anyone who you happen to know who went bonkers over the song below! And, more important, what an opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Maine!

There is new polling out that shows us up 51.8% to 42.9%, but Bill in Portland Maine over at the great orange satan reminds us of why poll numbers are crap:

I take you back to 1997 when, after nine attempts spanning 20 years, the Maine legislature finally passed a basic civil rights bill preventing discrimination in employment, housing, credit and public accommodation on the basis of sexual orientation. Governor Angus King signed it. The law was put on hold while the religious conservatives---trying to marginalize our very existence by denying us any official state recognition---launched a war to repeal it by a citizens veto referendum, very similar to the kind they're waging now. They got the signatures they needed and the fight to take away our newly-won civil rights was on.

The polls had our side up by several points. The result? The 1998 referendum passed. The fundies won. The final vote: 51.9% to 48.1%. It's one thing to feel disappointment when your favorite candidate loses. It's quite another when you are the one being voted on by your neighbors, and a majority of them agree that, yes, it should be legal for a Maine business owner to pull you aside and say, "I don’t want no faggots workin' here. You're fired." It took another seven years to finally make that against the law. To this day I still get a knot in my gut when I think about what happened 11 years ago.

The only way we stop this from happening again is to make sure that we can get our voters out to the polls. The No on 1 campaign needs your help to make sure they have the resources to execute their field plan. So give today and maybe take home a platinum Joan Osborne album, or a rare Barbara Streisand poster and DVD.

The Courage Campaign is sending me back to Maine in a week or so. Expect more reports from on the ground there on how your generous donations are being spent. I was there a couple weeks ago and can assure you, the campaign is a tightly run ship, simultaneously on the offense and firing back at the lies spewed from the other side. No on 1 is IDing and turning out their voters, relying on thousands of in state volunteers and assisted by out of state phone bankers from around the country. They know how to win in Maine "and can do it with your help.

Yesterday, the No on 1 campaign released this great new ad, featuring a Catholic mom who wants nothing more than for her gay son to have the same rights as everybody else.

It seems to have touched a nerve with the other side. A Catholic group is demanding that the ad be taken down, because:

“Everybody knows the Catholic Church is opposed to counterfeit marriages. The Church believes marriage is a natural institution, vindicated by common reason that serves both men and women, and the needs of children. The Church defends marriage as a civic institution believing marriage and family to be the fundamental unit of society,” explained Burch.

“For homosexual groups to suggest that the Catholic Church believes otherwise is disingenuous, dishonest, and an insult to the intelligence of Catholic voters in Maine,” said Burch.

We are on offense here in Maine, pushing back at the Catholic Church which has raised over $214k for Stand for Marriage Maine last quarter.

But the campaign needs your help to win this election, to be the first to protect marriage rights at the ballot box, to keep the momentum up that we have gained since Prop 8. And they need the resources to do it.

We are launching a "moneybomb" for Maine, with a big push to get as much cash in the door for No on 1 by Oct 15th, the last major financial filing deadline and the first day of early voting.

After that date money in the door just isn't as useful for the campaign. They need to figure out their budget for the last few weeks of the campaign.

Give now if you can on Blue America's ActBlue page. Maine is a cheap state. Here's a breakdown of what your donation will "buy".

$1,000 we can blanket the state with radio ads for 1 day

$800 pays for one field organizer for a week

$720 would fund 20 canvasses in key counties around the state on a Saturday

$550 pays for one channel of cable for a day

$420 pays for one much needed field organizer for a week

$330 is 2 radio commercials to beat back their lies

$210 pays for 70 $3/day cell phones to talk to targeted voters

$186 about the cost of 1 radio commercial

$137 will buy supplies for 4 door-to-door canvasses

$108 buys about 100 yard signs for visibility

$72 will pay for signage for visibility for one weekend on a targeted campus

$66 pays for about 20 $3/day cell phones to talk to targeted voters

$54 buys 50 yard signs for visibility

$36 will fund supplies for one door-to-door canvass

$24 buys 20 yard signs for visibility

Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) has introduced a bill that would repeal the reprehensible Defense of Marriage Act:

Civil Rights advocates and LGBT Americans herald new legislation to overturn one of the nation's most discriminatory laws

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO), along with Congressman John Conyers (D-MI), Congressman John Lewis (D-GA), Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) and Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA), with a total of 91 original co-sponsors to date, introduced the Respect for Marriage Act in the House of Representatives. This legislation would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), a 1996 law which discriminates against lawfully married same-sex couples.

The 13-year-old DOMA singles out legally married same-sex couples for discriminatory treatment under federal law, selectively denying them critical federal responsibilities and rights, including programs like social security that are intended to ensure the stability and security of American families.

The Respect for Marriage Act, the consensus of months of planning and organizing among the nation’s leading LGBT and civil rights stakeholders and legislators, would ensure that valid marriages are respected under federal law, providing couples with much-needed certainty that their lawful marriages will be honored under federal law and that they will have the same access to federal responsibilities and rights as all other married couples. Read on...

This legislation is long overdue. Three cheers for Rep. Nadler and the other Democratic co-sponsors in the House! Pam's House Blend has a list of responses from the LGBT community. You can read them here.

Update: Michael Duvall has resigned. h/t commenter vorhese.

I've said for years that most politicians are in bed with lobbyists, but in the case of California Republican Michael Duvall, he's actually getting his freak on with one. Duvall gets the Jesse Jackson treatment, getting caught with an open microphone, bragging about making love and spanking his much younger mistress:

"And we had made love Wednesday. A lot."

"So I am getting into spanking her...yeah, I like it."

"I like spanking her. She goes, I know you like spanking me."

This bit of gotcha journalism wouldn't interest me much, but for the fact that Duvall considers himself to be one of those family values Republicans -- who just happens to be having kinky sex outside of his marriage.

Even the media is starting to call out republicans over their seriously ridiculous protests against President Obama--who dared to give a back to school speech to the children. Usually the teabagger brigade compares Obama to Hitler or a socialist, but Joe Watkins (former Bush 41 guy) came up with a new and even more stupid argument than usual. Parents can't compete with his charisma----ergo he shouldn't speak to the kids. Huh?

Watkins: This president is not an ordinary president. He's one of the most gifted speakers that the world has ever seen. He's gifted, he's charismatic and when he speaks he speaks with tremendous authority and great conviction and with tremendous persuasion. And it's one thing to talk to adult who maybe have the ability to discern between right or wrong or whether they agree or disagree. The challenge becomes the parents when he talks to their kids about the present, he's so persuasive, he's campaigning for the hearts and minds of the kids. Today's speech was fine....but what moms and dads are afraid of is that what happens when kids who can't distinguish what moms or dads can when the Defense of Marriage is repealed or the act comes up to...

Dr. Nancy: Joe, Joe, he didn't slip, there was no gotcha in this speech, you know that, there was nothing like that here.

Watkins: No, but we know they'll be other times when the president will make very strong and compelling arguments for issues that moms and dads don't agree with.

Usually, this would be the perfect trait that American appreciate in a president, so he could be a positive influence on the kids of America. Telling them that cutting class and to study hard is what they need to hear, but not to republicans. And Watkins turns it into a gay bashing segment. Is Joe saying that the president will schedule a speech to school kids in favor and talk about the Defense of Marriage Act? Is he kidding me? Even Chuck Todd looked at Watkins like he had an alien brain.

Todd: Joe, it sounds like you're worried the president's going to be too popular with kids. I guess...is that the concern that if he were less charismatic you'd be OK with him speaking to children?

Watkins: No, not at all....he's so popular and persuasive that parents don't want to compete with that

Say, what? Liar, liar, Watkins' pants are on fire. As long as the president is conservative then that president can speak to the kids every single day. I'm waiting for conservatives to ban their children from ever watching an Obama speech or interview. Republicans have become freaks since they've let the teabaggers take over their party.

Of course...

According to WRAL News, sources expect former U.S. Sen. John Edwards to admit that he is the father of his former mistress' 18-month-old daughter.

Edwards confessed last August to an affair with Rielle Hunter, who worked for the Edwards presidential campaign in 2008. Edwards has denied father her daughter, saying the relationship with Hunter ended before the child was conceived.

I will reiterate again that it is my belief that the extramarital activities of any one is not of interest. However, I do think it's instructive to note the character of someone who would break so callously the promises made to those closest to him.

However, let me also say (and I do this as a former HUGE John Edwards supporter), WHEW!!!! I'm so glad his campaign blew up when it did. It's bad enough that he took his marriage vows so casually, but to be dumb enough to do so without taking precautions against this kind of eventuality does not speak well for Edwards' intelligence at all.

Here we go again. Another phony pro-life or should I say, anti-choice republican gets exposed in dirty dealings. He's not so much against the idea of sex as wanting the young ones for himself.

Ken Whitehouse:

State Sen. Paul Stanley (R-Memphis) will resign his chairmanship of the Senate Commerce Committee tomorrow, NashvillePost.com has learned, in the wake of the revelation that he was the subject of an attempted blackmail scheme over a sexual relationship with an intern in his office.

Nashville Post:

In April of this year, I and a group of Planned
Parenthood supporters from Memphis met with Sen. Paul Stanley in his
office. We told him about all the good Planned Parenthood does in
Memphis by providing basic gynecological health care and birth control
to teens and young people and also providing medically-accurate
sexuality education programs. I had hoped to convince him that there’s
a real need for our services, especially in Memphis, which has the
highest sexually transmitted infection rates in the nation and one of
the highest teenage pregnancy rates as well. Planned Parenthood
Greater Memphis Region tries to help young people and low income
people, almost all of whom are already sexually active protect
themselves from pregnancy and disease. Sen. Paul Stanley is my state
senator, and he made it clear at our meeting that he didn’t care about
my concerns about these issues that have a major impact in the Memphis
area and that he would not ever support Planned Parenthood.

He told us that he didn’t believe young people should have sex
before marriage anyway, that his faith and church are important to
him, and he wants to promote abstinence, blah, blah, blah. Now I
realize that when he said those things, he had already been sexing it
up with an intern and her boyfriend was trying to blackmail him with
dirty pictures. In retrospect, I think maybe Sen. Stanley meant that
he just doesn’t want young people to have sex with each other, thereby
saving the cute young things for himself. Hypocrite, anyone?

No sex for you....Is Stanley saying that after marriage you should be able to have sex with everybody?

Having seen some staid and really boring wedding ceremonies, and more than a few garish overly expensive extravagances, this is a welcome respite. And one much more in keeping with what one hopes should be the true spirit of the day, a joyous experience.

A viral phenomenon this week at YouTube. Quite perfect.

From All Rebel Rockers (2008)

So I have this beautiful niece by marriage, whom I've known since she was a very little girl. She has recently graduated from college (Journalism degree, I didn't have the heart to tell her) and due to the vagaries of the economy, lost her very first job.

I've always told her that your 20s should be a time to explore. It's my personal belief that you're still fairly amorphous at that age, and it's the perfect time for you to go out and try different things and explore new places before the ties of jobs, spouses and children weigh you down. Well, my funny, smart, sweet niece is going to do that. She's announced to her family that's she's going to go to Egypt to teach ESL as part of her goal to travel the world.

So this is for B. as she gets ready for her new adventure. Because, darling girl, as you will soon discover, the more you learn, the less you know. But I do know that (we) love you.

Have a song that you'd recommend to someone just starting out in life?