May 23, 2012

You are here: Home / Archives for Same-Sex Marriage

Many legislative links among new commission members

February 1, 2012 By

Governor Branstad has appointed 30 Iowans to the state Judicial Nominating Commission that selects judges for Iowa’s district courts — and many have direct links to the Iowa legislature.  (See the entire list below.)

Two of the governor’s picks for the Judicial Nominating Commission used to serve in the state senate. Mark Zieman of Postville and Kitty Rehberg of Rowley are both Republicans. Another — Jerry Welter of Monticello — is a Republican who used to serve in the Iowa House.

Three others are spouses of current Republican legislators. David Boettger of Harlan is the husband of Nancy Boettger, a state senator. Catherine Miller-Sands of Wapello is the wife of Representative Tom Sands, a key figure in tax negotiations at the statehouse. Patricia McKinley is married to Senator Paul McKinley, who until November was the Republican leader in the state senate.

Another Branstad appointment to the Judicial Nominating Commission, Mary Sukup of Dougherty, is the spouse of Charles Sukup, former chairman of the Iowa Association of Business and Industry. Ann Trimble-Ray of Early, another commission member, is a long-time aide to Congressman Steve King.

None of these appointments are subject to confirmation in the state senate and all take effect immediately. 

The Judicial Nominating Commission submits three names to whomever is Iowa’s governor for openings on the district courts, and the governor must choose from that slate of names.  A separate Judicial Nominating Commission selects nominees for openings on the Iowa Supreme Court and Iowa Court of Appeals. The way judges are appointed in Iowa came under fire after the Supreme Court ruling in 2009 that legalized gay marriage. Republicans blasted then-Democrat Governor Chet Culver and his predecessor, Democrat Tom Vilsack, for packing the commission with Democrats.

Here’s the full list of Branstad’s picks for the judicial nominatng commission:

Judicial Nominating Commission District 1A
Leola Harris, Hopkinton, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Mark Zieman, Postville, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 1B
David Hanson, Fayette, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Kathleen Rehberg, Rowley, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 2A
Ella Severs, Clarksville, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Mary Sukup, Dougherty, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 2B
Bill Horan, Rockwell City, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Ann Trimble-Ray, Early, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 3A
Janis Bowles, Spirit Lake, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Dr. Cody Hoefert, Rock Rapids, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Grace Ivey, Storm Lake, appointment through Jan. 31, 2016 (vacancy filled)

Judicial Nominating Commission District 3B
Tammy Kobza, Ireton, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Rachel Raak Law, Correctionville, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 4
H. David Boettger, Harlan, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Robert Camblin, Atlantic, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 5A
Scott Bailey, Otley, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
James Butler, St. Charles, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 5B
Tracee Knapp, Redding, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Patricia McKinley, Chariton, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 5C
John Bloom, West Des Moines, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Ryan Koopmans, Des Moines, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 6
Alice De-Rycke, Belle Plaine, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Patricia Seebach, Dysart, appointment through Jan. 31, 2016 (vacancy filled)
John “Jerry” Welter, Monticello, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 7
Judy Davidson, Bettendorf, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Danette Hunt, Clinton, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 8A
Steven Berger, Wellman, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Keith Caviness, Ottumwa, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Judicial Nominating Commission District 8B
Elizabeth Garrels, Mt. Pleasant, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018
Catherine Miller-Sands, Wapello, appointment through Jan. 31, 2018

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , ,

Gay advocacy group starts new public relations campaign

January 19, 2012 By

The gay advocacy group, “One Iowa” is starting a new campaign to try and sway public opinion in favor of same-sex marriages. Nearly three years after the Iowa Supreme Court ruling made it legal for same-sex couples to marry in Iowa, polls still show a majority of Iowans oppose the decision.

A February 2011, Des Moines Register Iowa Poll showed 38% against, 35% in favor. One Iowa’s executive director, Troy Price, says the poll also showed 30% don’t care one way or the other. He says if the undecided citizens got to know more gay couples, they would see there’s nothing wrong with same-sex unions

“Most of the conversations about marriage in this state have been focused on the political aspects of the debate, they’ve focused on its impact on the statehouse or on judicial retention or on the presidential caucuses, but what’s gotten lost in this conversation is what this debate is really all about, which is about people,” Price says.

The new effort called “Why Marriage Matters” is trying to convince Iowans that same-sex couples, they would see they’re no different than anyone else. 

“They get up every morning, they make breakfast for their kids, they go to work, they have dinner at the end of the day, they go to PTA meetings, they’re active in their churches and communities. They’re regular, everyday Iowans, who only want their commitment to one another to be recognized by the community they actively participate in,” Price says.

The public relations effort includes a website and speakers’ bureau to share the stories of married gays and lesbians. Price says the public attitude about same-sex marriage is shifting. National polls now indicate 53% of Americans approve of the unions.

Three of the Iowa Supreme Court judges who voted in favor of the decision overturning the state ban on gay marriage were voted off the bench in the retention election following the ruling. Democrat legislators repeatedly blocked attempts by Republicans last year to bring a constitutional amendment forward to allow Iowans to vote on the gay marriage issue.

Legislators have said social issues such as gay marriage will not be a focus of this year’s session.

Filed Under: Human Interest, News Tagged With:

Branstad can hire $325 an hour lawyer

January 17, 2012 By

Governor Branstad has gotten clearance to hire a private attorney who charges $325 an hour to work on a lawsuit filed against the Republican governor.

State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald says he and the other three members who were at the state Executive Council meeting this morning had little choice but to approve the deal since aides in the state’s attorney general’s office said the governor had a “strong preference” for outside counsel — and someone in the attorney general’s office may be called as a witness in the case.

“I thought it was a shame that we had to hire outside counsel, pay them $325 an hour which is four times our normal rate, to defend the governor’s office in this case where he has allegedly demoted someone because, I understand, he’s a homosexual,” Fitzgerald says.

Branstad asked the state’s Workers Compensation Commissioner to resign last year. When Commissioner Chris Godfrey refused, the governor cut Godfrey’s annual salary by $36,000. Godfrey’s lawsuit alleges Branstad targeted him because he’s gay. George LaMarca of Des Moines is the attorney Branstad has hired to work on the case. Fitzgerald, who is a Democrat, suggests there may have been another attorney available who wouldn’t have charged as much.

“To have someone charging us $325 an hour seems exorbitant. It seems a big cost to the taxpayer for what I would think would be a normal employee-relations type of struggle here,” Fitzgerald says. “So it’s a big expense and I hate to us go through it, but since the attorney general’s office couldn’t represent the folks, we had to approve it.”

The lawsuit names both Branstad and Brenna Findley — the governor’s legal counsel — as defendants, so she can’t work as the governor’s attorney on the case either. Fitzgerald says there’s “no question” the state will wind up paying more than $36,000 which is the salary cut Branstad ordered for the Workers Compensation Commissioner.

“If any of you have been through court cases, legal fees ring up very fast,” Fitzgerald says. “We could be paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees just to argue over this one individual’s demotion in pay.”

The Workers Compensation Commission is seeking $1 million in damages from the state in his lawsuit over his demotion.

Filed Under: News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , ,

“Fracture” among Iowa’s social conservatives

December 20, 2011 By

Two men who announced at a morning news conference they’re backing Rick Santorum’s bid for the White House have ignited a firestorm within the state’s social conservative community that is likely to linger long after the Caucuses are over. 

Bob Vander Plaats, a three-time candidate for governor, is president of The Family Leader, a group that has led the charge against gay marriage in Iowa. Chuck Hurley, a former state legislator, is the long-time president of The Iowa Family Policy Center, which is part of The Family Leader organization. Both are now backing Santorum. In speaking with reporters this morning, Hurley acknowledged the rift among religious conservatives in Iowa — and even publicly cited the vow from a fellow “cultural warrior” to burn Bob Vander Plaats in effigy for the way this decision came down.

“Today, I want to extend an olive branch to any and every overheated former friend in this movement,” Hurley said.

Vander Plaats said he “didn’t want to get into” the conflict. 

“January 4 is also coming,” Vander Plaats said, a reference to the day after the Iowa Caucuses. “And on January 4, we need to get along again. We all need to come together.” 

Hurley, though, wasn’t willing to let it go.

“Those sort of threats being breathed out need to be confronted and not just swept under the rug,” Hurley said. “Until that individual deals with his own anger problem, those sort of things will divide and they’ll hurt our opportunity to coalesce around a pro-family candidate and they’ll hurt our opportunity to win the Iowa Senate back.”

It seems a bit like airing “dirty laundry” in public to Craig Robinson who the Iowa GOP’s political director for the 2008 campaign.

“This is definitely something that should probably be settled privately instead of aired at the endorsement,” Robinson said during an interview with Radio Iowa this afternoon. “I just think it kind of distracts from the purpose of today’s press conference.” 

Robinson runs www.TheIowaRepublican.com, a for-profit website. Back in the 2000 Iowa Caucus cycle, Robinson was working on the Steve Forbes campaign.

“I’m not surprised that there’s hard feelings,” Robinson said. “There’s always hard feelings in campaigns, but this one seems to be a little more out in the open.” 

Steve Scheffler is the leader of the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition, another conservative group which hosted events with all the candidates — but decided not to endorse a single candidate.

“Through experience in working on three caucus campaigns as a staffer and thinking that I’m a pretty good salesman, at the end of the day an endorsement doesn’t really mean much, especially when candidates are quite similar on the issues,” Scheffler said this afternoon during a telephone interview with Radio Iowa. “And sometimes I think it causes some divisions and some hard feelings among people who say, ‘Why didn’t you endorse my candidate…who was just as good as the candidate that you endorsed?’”

Danny Carroll, the former president of The Family Leader’s board, has endorsed Michele Bachmann. During an interview earlier this afternoon, Carroll stressed the decision from The Family Leader’s board to remain neutral in the race.

“It’s not too surprising and really, probably even an indication of a broader fragmentation across the whole slate of candidates,” Carroll said.

Doug Gross, a Republican who has warned of the danger in a “camp Christian” dynamic in Iowa’s Republican Party, said this endorsement episode illustrates the “fracture” among Iowa’s religious conservatives.

“It helps Romney because generally the evangelical community appears to be united around only one thing and that’s to be certain that he doesn’t win,” Gross told Radio Iowa. “I thought there might be some desire might help them unite around one of their candidates, so as a result of them splitting up their negative feelings toward him, it enhances (Romney’s) chances.”

Filed Under: News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , ,

Could a written statement from Gingrich secure Family Leader’s backing?

December 12, 2011 By

Republican candidate Newt Gingrich has “solemnly” vowed to defend traditional marriage if he’s elected president.

Gingrich sent a written statement to The Family Leader, a conservative group based in Iowa which produced a wide-ranging “Marriage Vow” pledge for the candidates this summer. Gingrich, who has been divorced twice, wrote that he would “uphold the institution of marriage” by being faithful to his third wife, Calista, and by respecting “the marital bonds of others.”

Gingrich also expressed support for an amendment to the U.S. constitution which would ban same-sex marriage.

Gingrich wrote that he believes “life begins at conception” and, as president, he would sign legislation to provide “greater protections for the unborn.”

By far the longest paragraph in the Gingrich statement, however, was a wide-ranging set of declarations about the federal court system. Gingrich said unelected federal judges had caused a “constitutional crisis” because, according to Gingrich, the public has lost confidence in the courts. 

“Obviously, I think all of us wish he just would have signed our pledge,” Bob Vander Plaats, CEO of The Family Leader, told Radio Iowa this evening. “But when you read his pledge, it almost begs the question of, you know, ‘Why didn’t you sign our pledge?’ because (the Gingrich statement) is a very strong pledge as it relates to the sanctity of human life, God’s design for the family with one-man/one-woman marriage.”

The Family Leader’s board of directors will meet again this weekend to ponder endorsing a candidate. 

“I think the board and myself are like many caucus-goers. We’re just like of up in the air yet,” Vander Plaats said. “…I think after Thursday night’s debate, we along with caucus-goers are going to have to make up our mind on which candidate we’re going to support.”

It is possible Vander Plaats will personally endorse a candidate if The Family Leader’s board of directors decides against endorsing. There has been speculation Vander Plaats was leaning toward supporting Gingrich, but Vander Plaats told Radio Iowa he is among the ranks of the undecided.

“If Darla and I were to caucus tonight, we’d first have to have a caucus in our living room to determine who we’re going to caucus for,” Vander Plaats said. Darla is Vander Plaats’s wife.

Gingrich helped Vander Plaats and his allies financially in 2010 in their successful effort to oust three Iowa Supreme Court justices who had ruled in favor of same-sex marriage.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , ,

Santorum worries about parents’ rights in public classroom discussions

December 9, 2011 By

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum says he’s concerned some public school teachers may be discussing the topic of same-sex marriage in their classrooms, over the objections of parents. 

“The parents have very little ground to object, pull their children out of that because they don’t want their children taught that that is normal, good and healthy behavior when they don’t believe it is,” Santorum says.

Gay and lesbian couples have been legally able to marry in Iowa since April of 2009.

Santorum made his comments today during an appearance on the University of Northern Iowa campus. Santorum is the second candidate to participate in the Presidential Candidate Education Forum, co-sponsored by Iowa Public Radio and the University of Northern Iowa.

Filed Under: News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , ,

Candidates asked to go “deeper” than “talking points”

November 18, 2011 By

A half dozen Republican presidential candidates are scheduled to appear together late Saturday afternoon at a Des Moines church for what’s billed as a “Thanksgiving Family Forum.”  

The Family Leader, a group that has been leading the campaign against gay marriage in Iowa, is sponsoring the forum. The candidates will sit together around a table for the two-hour event. Frank Luntz — a political consultant who specializes in “message creation and image management” — will moderate the discussion. 

Bob Vander Plaats, president and CEO of The Family Leader, says the goal is to get more than “talking point answers” from the candidates.

“A sample question that Frank Luntz gave to the candidates is: “You know, 14 months from now, you all hope to be swearing an oath as the next president of the United States and that oath ends with the words, “so help me God.” What does that phrase mean to you?’” Vander Plaats said during an interview with Radio Iowa. “So the questions are going to be a little bit deeper, a little bit more thought provoking and hopefully revealing who a candidate is and what their vision is versus what a candidate is against.”

Vander Plaats and The Family Leader’s board of directors will meet Monday to discuss endorsing one of the candidates.

“Should we endorse or do we remain neutral or do I get freed up as the president and CEO to make an individual endorsement versus a group endorsement?” Vander Plaats asks. “So we definitely hope this forum provides us a lot of insight.” 

The six candidates who have agreed to participate are Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, Rick Perry and Rick Santorum.  Mitt Romney turned down the group’s invitation and Vander Plaats said Romney will not be receiving his endorsement or the backing of The Family Leader organization.

“He’s missing too many major events with conservatives,” Vander Plaats said. “And even if he were to get the nomination, he’s going to count on this base to go to work for him, so this base needs to be inspired and when you’re ‘dissing’ them at major events like this, it’s not a good sign for Governor Romney.”

Earlier this week Governor Branstad made similar statements, saying Romney is making a “big mistake” by not campaigning more often in Iowa.

“Romney is dropping in the polls and I think he thinks that he wants to keep down expectations, you know,” Branstad said during a forum in Des Moines sponsored by Politico. “Well, his expectations may be really bad if he doesn’t get a little more serious about it.”

Branstad, by the way, scheduled a campaign fundraiser Saturday night – starting a half hour before The Family Leader forum ends at 6 p.m. – and all six candidates have agreed to stop by.

Romney spent a day campaigning in eastern Iowa last week and he’s reportedly headed to central Iowa next week, although his campaign staff has not confirmed the trip to Radio Iowa.  Romney did not sign the wide-ranging “Marriage Vow” document The Family Leader published this summer, saying some provisions were “undignified and inappropriate.”

The document denounced pornography and adultery. A section which argued African American children were better off during slavery than they are today was later retracted. Just two candidates — Michele Bachmann and Rick Santorum – signed the pledge. Newt Gingrich didn’t sign “The Marriage Vow,” but Vander Plaats said Gingrich — who has admitted to affairs and has divorced twice — isn’t automatically disqualified from getting his endorsement or the backing of The Family Leader.

“At the heart of our faith is a thing called forgiveness,” Vander Plaats said. “…Has he asked for forgiveness? Has he demonstrated a level of maturity? Is he willing to move on? A lot of these attendees like Newt, they like his experience and they like his ability to debate and so if the focus can be on his vision for America, I think he’s going to do well. If the focus remains on his personal past, then he’s probably going to be in trouble.”

A new group called “Progress Iowa” suggests Gingrich may get the backing of Vander Plaats because Gingrich donated $200,000 to the campaign Vander Plaats led to target two Iowa Supreme Court justices who signed onto the opinion which legalized gay marriage in Iowa. Those justices were voted off the court in 2010. 

Earlier this month, though, Vander Plaats was among a group of social conservatives who went to eastern Iowa to try to influence the outcome of a state senate race in Marion. They argued the Republican candidate would help advance the effort to ban gay marriage. That Republican candidate lost by 12 percentage points.

Filed Under: News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , ,
« Older Posts
Newer Posts »