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May 06, 2009
As Maine Goes?
This morning, Maine became the fifth state in the country to legalize gay marriage, but only the second to do it though the legislative process.
AUGUSTA -- Democratic Gov. John Baldacci today signed into law a bill allowing gay marriage, making Maine the fifth state to allow people of the same sex to wed.Honestly, I'm kind of surprised Baldacci signed the bill. Under Maine law, if the governor does not veto or sign a bill while the legislature is in session, it becomes law after ten days. I figured he'd go that route. The bill does contain protection for churches and others who can perform marriages, which I appreciate since I'm a notary who can officiate at wedding ceremonies in this state.The governor's signature came barely an hour after the measure won final approval from the Maine Senate, which voted 21-13, with one absent, to pass the law. The House passed the bill Tuesday.
The law's passage also sets up a likely referendum campaign, as opponents pledged to launch a petition drive to overturn the law at the statewide ballot box.
Baldacci said in a statement that while he has opposed gay marriage in the past, “I have come to believe that this is a question of fairness and of equal protection under the law, and that a civil union is not equal to civil marriage.
As the story mentions, Maine has a referendum process that could lead to a people’s veto of this legislation. Petition drives are likely gearing up right now. Approximately 55,000 signatures are needed to get a referendum on the ballot, so this question might be put before Maine voters.
Less certain is whether it will succeed. In the past 14 years, Mainers have been asked to vote on four different referendum questions dealing with gay rights issues. The last effort to repeal a gay rights bill in 2005 went down to defeat, 56% to 44%. Since then, the state has increased the Democrat majority in the legislature and gave Obama 58% of the vote to McCain's 41%. This is not a conservative state.
The law will go into effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session, which means Maine's first gay marriages will start in September. Those marriages are sure to be covered extensively by the media, and the inevitable ad campaigns to defeat the veto effort will ask voters whether they're willing to break up already-happily married couples. Before you doubt the effectiveness of that message, keep in mind that almost 60% of this state's voters cast their ballot for hopenchange.
The overblown rhetoric by gay marriage opponents in this state has not been helpful. One of the most vocal spokesmen has been Michael Heath, the director of the Maine Family Policy Council (formerly the Maine Christian Civic League). His idea of taking a stance against gay rights includes threatening to out gay legislators and publicly asking whether the state's governor has a "gay gene." The state's liberals could not have invented a better opponent if they tried.
There are sure to be extensive legal challenges to the petition drive, so a people's veto referendum is not a sure thing. If one does go before voters, though, I think there is a good chance it will be defeated. Gay marriage is probably here to stay in Maine.
The biggest winner today? Local television stations. If this goes to referendum, both sides are going to pour millions into advertising. I'm sure they'll be grateful.
Cross-posted at the Greenroom.
Posted by slublog at May 6, 2009 09:48 PM
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Comments
good riddance, I'm not against gay marriage, they can be as miserable as the rest of us.
vehemence against it is silly, let them experience it. They'll have just as many problems as the rest of us.
Hey, don't be an asshole.
Posted by: coldmexican at May 7, 2009 12:39 AM
If the state can tax bottled water, perhaps they'll tax gay marriage!
Posted by: FishFearMe at May 7, 2009 07:32 AM
After the House passed it and then the Senate finalized it, they said the governor had ten days to sign it. I was shocked that a couple of hours later they broke in on regular programming with a special report... "Governor Baldacci has signed the gay marriage bill!" Man, even having professed being against gay marriage in the past, it sure didn't take him long to jump on the bandwagon! This is truly a man who doesn't have the courage to stand by his convictions. Blech!
Posted by: Cheryl at May 7, 2009 11:03 AM
Great post! Keep up the excellent work!!
COMMON CENTS
http://www.commoncts.blogspot.com
Posted by: Steve at May 7, 2009 03:18 PM
erm, you need an edit button, I didn't mean to call you an asshole, at lease in this case.
but railing against this is kinda a lost cause.
it'll happen eventually
Posted by: coldmexican at May 12, 2009 01:10 AM