(BUSINESS WIRE)--National Popular Vote convincingly earned second passage in the Massachusetts Senate Tuesday, placing the bill before the Governor for signature and enactment. If signed, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts will be the sixth state to enact the legislation that guarantees the presidency to the candidate who wins the most votes in all fifty states.
“On the heels of our huge bi-partisan win in the New York Senate, this continues our momentum on behalf of Republicans, Democrats and Independents who support this legislation.”
“We are pleased with the decisive legislative vote from the house and senate bringing Massachusetts that much closer to giving voters a stronger voice in electing the President of the United States,” said John Koza, Chairman of National Popular Vote. “On the heels of our huge bi-partisan win in the New York Senate, this continues our momentum on behalf of Republicans, Democrats and Independents who support this legislation.”
National Popular Vote recently passed the New York Senate with 22 of 27 Republicans and 30 of 32 Democrats voting in favor of the bill. The Massachusetts House and Senate moved the bill with overwhelming majorities.
“We want to extend a warm thank you to the supporters of our legislation and encourage others to closely consider our bill,” said Koza. “We will continue our state-by-state efforts to give every voter – right, center and left - a stronger and more relevant voice in electing the President.”
National Popular Vote legislation replaces current winner-take-all rules, where presidential candidates receive all of a state’s Electoral votes for winning the most popular votes in a given state. Winner-take-all rules result in a system where candidates campaign only to closely divided “battleground” states, while ignoring two-thirds of the states often termed “fly-over”.
When states totaling 270 Electoral Votes pass the legislation, National Popular Vote will award a majority of Electoral Votes to the candidate who wins the most popular votes in all fifty states, guaranteeing the presidency.
“We want to create a system where candidates campaign for every vote, not just battleground votes,” concluded Koza. “National Popular Vote does that while preserving the Electoral College and the intent of the Founding Fathers.” For more information visit www.nationalpopularvote.com.
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Showing posts with label massachusetts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label massachusetts. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Friday, January 15, 2010
Libertarians applaud Joe Kennedy for standing firm
The Libertarian Party (LP) today expressed its support for independent Libertarian Joe Kennedy's determination not to drop out of the Massachusetts special election for U.S. Senator.
The New York Times recently published an article that considered Kennedy's effect on the January 19 election. While some claim that Kennedy will steal votes from Republican Scott Brown, others think his strong support for civil liberties and his anti-war position will cause him to steal votes from Democrat Martha Coakley.
Wes Benedict, Executive Director of the LP, commented, "In fact, no one is 'stealing' anything. The votes belong to the voters, not the candidates. If voters choose Kennedy over Brown, it's probably because they understand that Brown is a typical big-government Republican. If voters choose Kennedy over Coakley, it's probably because they understand that Coakley is a typical big-government Democrat."
Benedict added, "If the next Massachusetts senator gets elected with less than 50 percent of the vote, blame the foolish plurality election system implemented by Republicans and Democrats -- not Joe Kennedy."
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The New York Times recently published an article that considered Kennedy's effect on the January 19 election. While some claim that Kennedy will steal votes from Republican Scott Brown, others think his strong support for civil liberties and his anti-war position will cause him to steal votes from Democrat Martha Coakley.
Wes Benedict, Executive Director of the LP, commented, "In fact, no one is 'stealing' anything. The votes belong to the voters, not the candidates. If voters choose Kennedy over Brown, it's probably because they understand that Brown is a typical big-government Republican. If voters choose Kennedy over Coakley, it's probably because they understand that Coakley is a typical big-government Democrat."
Benedict added, "If the next Massachusetts senator gets elected with less than 50 percent of the vote, blame the foolish plurality election system implemented by Republicans and Democrats -- not Joe Kennedy."
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Thursday, October 15, 2009
Massachusetts Becomes First State to Challenge Legality of DOMA
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts v United States
This past July, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the constitutionality of the federal Defense Against Marriage Act (DOMA). While there have been several legal challenges against DOMA, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts v United States is the first suit filed by a state.
The lawsuit specifically alleges that the federal definition of marriage as a union between one man and one woman is unconstitutional and that DOMA has interfered with the state's "sovereign authority" to define and regulate marriage. The complaint also alleges that DOMA has resulted in a denial of rights and benefits to same-sex couples in Massachusetts, including employment and retirement benefits, social security payments and health insurance coverage.
Massachusetts became the first state to recognize the right of same-sex couples to marry in 2004. Since that time, the state has granted approximately 16,000 same-sex marriages.
Currently, only three other states recognize and grant same-sex marriages: Connecticut, Iowa and Vermont. New Hampshire will begin recognizing and granting same-sex marriages in January 2010. Maine may soon join the group as well, depending on the outcome of a November vote. New York and Washington, D.C. also recognize same-sex marriages from other states, but at present do not grant them.
The Defense Against Marriage Act (DOMA)
In 1996, President Bill Clinton signed DOMA into law. The Act served two purposes:
-- It provided a legal definition of "marriage" under federal laws as a union between one man and one woman and defined "spouse" as a husband or wife of the opposite sex
-- It provided that states did not have to give recognition to same-sex marriages granted by other states
DOMA was introduced into Congress following a 1993 decision by Hawaii's Supreme Court that held the state's decision to ban same-sex marriages might be a violation of the Hawaiian Constitution. Other states feared that if Hawaii legalized same-sex marriages, they would be forced to recognize those marriages in their own states under the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the US Constitution.
The Full Faith and Credit Clause requires states to give "credit" to the laws and judicial decisions of other states. For example, the federal government has held that this clause requires states to enforce protection orders and support orders issued by other states.
There also was a fear that if same-sex marriages became legalized in one state, other states and the federal government would have to provide the same type of protections and benefits to same-sex spouses as they currently do to traditional married couples, including Social Security benefits and income tax credits.
In order to prevent these outcomes from occurring, DOMA was quickly pushed through Congress and signed into federal law. Following the law's passage, many states adopted "mini DOMAs" that defined marriage as between a man and woman and explicitly stated that the state would not recognize same-sex marriages from other states. Currently, 37 states have mini DOMA laws in place.
Challenges to DOMA
The Massachusetts lawsuit against the federal government is only the first of many recent attacks on DOMA. In fact, the constitutionality of DOMA has been questioned since its passage. The law has been attacked as a denial of equal protection and due process rights under the federal and state constitutions. It has been argued that the federal government does not have a rational basis for denying marriage to same-sex couples and that the distinction between same-sex and heterosexual couples is arbitrary and discriminatory.
DOMA also has been attacked as an invasion of state rights by the federal government. The Tenth Amendment to the US Constitution leaves all powers not specifically granted to the federal government to the state governments. Traditionally, this has included legal decisions regarding family law issues and eligibility for federal entitlement benefits.
In February 2009, a 9th Circuit judge ruled that DOMA's prohibition of federal recognition of same-sex spouses legally married under state law was unconstitutional. In the Matter of Brad Levenson, the federal appellate court ruled that a court employee's same-sex spouse was entitled to be a named beneficiary on the employee's health insurance and other benefits under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Act (FEHBA).
In addition to the 9th Circuit case, there was another case filed in California challenging Section 2 of the Act, which permits states to disregard same-sex marriages granted by other states. In Smelt v United States, same-sex couple Arthur Smelt and Christopher Hammer argued that their marriage should be recognized in other states. Their case was dismissed in August due to a filing error, but is likely to be re-filed in federal court.
There is also another case out of Massachusetts challenging the federal definition of marriage under DOMA. Gill v Office of Personnel Management et al was filed last March and the government's response to the case is expected in mid to late September.
The federal government's reply to the criticisms and legal challenges against DOMA has been mixed. President Obama has long been critical of the federal law, but the Department of Justice has continued to defend any legal challenges against the Act. Some political commentators believe that the only way DOMA can be reversed is through the court system because of the potential political implications for any president who took direct action to repeal the federal law.
Whether or not Massachusetts' current challenge to DOMA will be successful has yet to be seen. Regardless of the outcome, it is unlikely that the legal challenges against DOMA will stop anytime soon.
Article provided by David M. Gabriel & Associates
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This past July, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the constitutionality of the federal Defense Against Marriage Act (DOMA). While there have been several legal challenges against DOMA, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts v United States is the first suit filed by a state.
The lawsuit specifically alleges that the federal definition of marriage as a union between one man and one woman is unconstitutional and that DOMA has interfered with the state's "sovereign authority" to define and regulate marriage. The complaint also alleges that DOMA has resulted in a denial of rights and benefits to same-sex couples in Massachusetts, including employment and retirement benefits, social security payments and health insurance coverage.
Massachusetts became the first state to recognize the right of same-sex couples to marry in 2004. Since that time, the state has granted approximately 16,000 same-sex marriages.
Currently, only three other states recognize and grant same-sex marriages: Connecticut, Iowa and Vermont. New Hampshire will begin recognizing and granting same-sex marriages in January 2010. Maine may soon join the group as well, depending on the outcome of a November vote. New York and Washington, D.C. also recognize same-sex marriages from other states, but at present do not grant them.
The Defense Against Marriage Act (DOMA)
In 1996, President Bill Clinton signed DOMA into law. The Act served two purposes:
-- It provided a legal definition of "marriage" under federal laws as a union between one man and one woman and defined "spouse" as a husband or wife of the opposite sex
-- It provided that states did not have to give recognition to same-sex marriages granted by other states
DOMA was introduced into Congress following a 1993 decision by Hawaii's Supreme Court that held the state's decision to ban same-sex marriages might be a violation of the Hawaiian Constitution. Other states feared that if Hawaii legalized same-sex marriages, they would be forced to recognize those marriages in their own states under the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the US Constitution.
The Full Faith and Credit Clause requires states to give "credit" to the laws and judicial decisions of other states. For example, the federal government has held that this clause requires states to enforce protection orders and support orders issued by other states.
There also was a fear that if same-sex marriages became legalized in one state, other states and the federal government would have to provide the same type of protections and benefits to same-sex spouses as they currently do to traditional married couples, including Social Security benefits and income tax credits.
In order to prevent these outcomes from occurring, DOMA was quickly pushed through Congress and signed into federal law. Following the law's passage, many states adopted "mini DOMAs" that defined marriage as between a man and woman and explicitly stated that the state would not recognize same-sex marriages from other states. Currently, 37 states have mini DOMA laws in place.
Challenges to DOMA
The Massachusetts lawsuit against the federal government is only the first of many recent attacks on DOMA. In fact, the constitutionality of DOMA has been questioned since its passage. The law has been attacked as a denial of equal protection and due process rights under the federal and state constitutions. It has been argued that the federal government does not have a rational basis for denying marriage to same-sex couples and that the distinction between same-sex and heterosexual couples is arbitrary and discriminatory.
DOMA also has been attacked as an invasion of state rights by the federal government. The Tenth Amendment to the US Constitution leaves all powers not specifically granted to the federal government to the state governments. Traditionally, this has included legal decisions regarding family law issues and eligibility for federal entitlement benefits.
In February 2009, a 9th Circuit judge ruled that DOMA's prohibition of federal recognition of same-sex spouses legally married under state law was unconstitutional. In the Matter of Brad Levenson, the federal appellate court ruled that a court employee's same-sex spouse was entitled to be a named beneficiary on the employee's health insurance and other benefits under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Act (FEHBA).
In addition to the 9th Circuit case, there was another case filed in California challenging Section 2 of the Act, which permits states to disregard same-sex marriages granted by other states. In Smelt v United States, same-sex couple Arthur Smelt and Christopher Hammer argued that their marriage should be recognized in other states. Their case was dismissed in August due to a filing error, but is likely to be re-filed in federal court.
There is also another case out of Massachusetts challenging the federal definition of marriage under DOMA. Gill v Office of Personnel Management et al was filed last March and the government's response to the case is expected in mid to late September.
The federal government's reply to the criticisms and legal challenges against DOMA has been mixed. President Obama has long been critical of the federal law, but the Department of Justice has continued to defend any legal challenges against the Act. Some political commentators believe that the only way DOMA can be reversed is through the court system because of the potential political implications for any president who took direct action to repeal the federal law.
Whether or not Massachusetts' current challenge to DOMA will be successful has yet to be seen. Regardless of the outcome, it is unlikely that the legal challenges against DOMA will stop anytime soon.
Article provided by David M. Gabriel & Associates
-----
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