(Updated) Howard Dean Speaks Out for Marriage Equality

Update: According to Vermont Freedom to Marry, the marriage equality bill passed the VT House today 95-52. It previously passed the VT Senate 26-4.
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Getting many of our Democratic leaders, candidates and office holders to speak out honestly, in plain language, on the critical need for equal civil rights for all -- including marriage equality -- has been a for many moons. There's a lot of vaguely worded lip service paid to the equal rights issue, but not much in the way of bold public statements to advocate and persuade. Then there's Howard Dean.

The former Vermont governor, presidential candidate and DNC Chair spoke out in favor of marriage equality in no uncertain terms last Saturday at a Vermont Democratic Party reception in Burlington:

Dean urged Vermont party members to press forward in this year's legislative drive to grant marriage rights to all Vermonters, regardless of gender.

"Vote your conscience, not your district," he advised legislators.

"Stand up for doing the right thing; for being a human being," he continued. "Put human rights above politics -- because if you don't, you'll regret it for the rest of your political career."

Conservatives, he said, should note that the first American soldier to "take a bullet" at the onset of the current war in Iraq was a gay man.

Dean reportedly received boistrous cheers from the crowd in response to his statements.

When he was the Governor of Vermont in 2000, Dean became a GLBT rights hero for signing a first-in-the-nation civil union measure into law. Dean wore a bullet-proof vest when he traveled the state to visit constituents who were opposed to his action. Things have changed dramatically in many parts of the nation since then, but we're still struggling here in New Mexico to get a basic domestic partnership bill passed despite Democratic majorities in both houses of the New Mexico Legislature.

The Vermont Senate has passed the marriage equality bill, and the legislation reportedly has a good chance of passing in the Vermont House as early as today. Unfortunately, Vermont's Republican Governor, Jim Douglas, has said he plans to veto the bill if it gets to his desk. Odds appear good, however, that the bill might have enough votes in the Vermont House to override the Governor's threatened veto.

Support for marriage equality is growing. Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York recently spoke out in favor, and three New England states -- Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine -- are in the midst of legislative battles on the issue. Massachusetts and Connecticut have already enacted marriage equality legislation.