SAN FRANCISCO -- In one of the nation's largest displays of support for gay rights, tens of thousands of people in cities across the country turned out in support of same-sex marriage on Saturday, lending their voices to an issue that many gay men and lesbians consider a critical step to full equality.
The demonstrations - from a sun-splashed throng in San Francisco to a chilly crowd in Minneapolis - came 11 days after California voters narrowly passed a ballot measure, Proposition 8, that outlawed previously legal same-sex ceremonies in the state. The measure's passage has spurred protests in California and across the country, including at several Mormon temples, a reflection of that church's ardent backing of the proposition.
Demonstrations in opposition to California's Proposition 8 were held in cities coast to coast on Saturday.
On Saturday, speakers painted the fight over Proposition 8 as another test of a movement that began with the riots at the Stonewall Inn in New York in 1969, survived the emergence of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s, and has since made enormous strides in societal acceptance, whether in television shows or in antidiscrimination laws. ….continue reading
Elder Sununu, Buckley Accuse Each Other Of Dishonesty
By Michael Cleveland
MANCHESTER - Former Gov. John H. Sununu and Democratic Party Chairman Ray Buckley essentially called one another liars in comments made to the New Hampshire Sunday News yesterday.
Sununu fired the first shot, responding to Buckley's comments in a story in yesterday's New Hampshire Union Leader, and calling them "dishonest."
Buckley, contacted by a reporter for comment, fired right back, and said Sununu was resorting to "lies."
The brouhaha between the two flared on Friday when Sununu, speaking to a meeting of the Seacoast Federated Republican Women, called Democratic Gov. John Lynch "the worst governor the state has ever had." ….continue reading
Former Governor John H. Sununu (right) with his son, Senator John E. Sununu (left).
New Hampshire Democrats Nominate Norelli For Speaker
By Norma Love
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - House Democrats nominated Terie Norelli of Portsmouth almost unanimously Saturday to serve a second term as speaker.
Democrat Kris Roberts of Keene challenged Norelli, but only got 18 of the 203 votes cast.
Norelli was elected speaker two years ago when Democrats took control of the House for the first time in 84 years. She was the first female Democratic speaker and the second woman to hold the post. Republican Donna Sytek was the other.
"The first challenge our new majority faced was to prove to the people of New Hampshire that Democrats could govern well and effectively, that we could build a balanced budget that met the needs of our citizens, and that we could create a climate of cooperation and openness in our deliberations," Norelli told the caucus. ...continue reading
Speaker of the House Terie Norelli (right) with Senate President Sylvia Larsen during a visit to Laconia in September of this year.
State GOP Weathers Powerful Democratic Storm
By Kevin Landrigan
CONCORD - he cash count is in, and it's really rather amazing that the New Hampshire Republican Party managed to hold on to the 10 seats it had in the state Senate.
Why? They were outgunned where it often counts in state and federal elections at the cash register.
The Democratic candidates seeking to flex their 14-vote majority more widely through the 24-person chamber collected what could be a record $1.7 million throughout the 2008 campaign.
By contrast, the GOP faithful seeking the same seats came up with $1 million, which is a lot, but still a quantum leap from the majority war chest. ….continue reading
Obama Delivers First Democratic Video Address
By Michael Falcone
CHICAGO - From now on it will be the weekly "Democratic Radio Address" in name only.
President-elect Barack Obama, capitalizing on his successful use of multimedia technologies during the campaign, delivered his message on Saturday using video as well as audio. It may seem like a political no-brainer in the age of YouTube, but as aides to Mr. Obama pointed out, it is a first for a president or president-elect.
In his address, which he recorded in Chicago on Friday, Mr. Obama focused on the country's financial crisis, calling it -- as he has before -- "the greatest economic challenge of our times." ...continue reading
Voters Still Reach Bottom Of The Ballot
By Kevin Landrigan
CONCORD - Straight-ticket voting is dead in New Hampshire, but the practice of voters getting to the bottom on general-election ballots with their choices is apparently alive and well. ….continue reading
