A Senate version of a New Mexico domestic partnership bill was struck down in a 17-25 vote yesterday.
Some of those in support of the domestic-partnership bill, including New Mexico senators, said Thursday’s defeat of a bill to was due to the New Mexico Conference of Catholic Bishops coming out in strong opposition to the bill. Many New Mexicans are Catholic and it didn’t take much for the Bishops to influence members of the Legislature via their parishioners.
While the Catholic Church remained silent on domestic partnerships in New Mexico in past debates, some are saying this change in position came on direction straight from the Vatican and The Pope himself.
Supporters of the bill said they had tried to hammer out a compromise during the 24 hours leading up to the vote and changed some of the original language and taking out words like spouse, marriage and references to either word in an effort to placate the bishops and Republican opposition. But those changes weren’t enough to do the trick because they didn’t do enough to satisfy the concerns of the bishops and the Pope.
Sounds like the Catholic Church tasted a bit of victory with “Yes on Proposition 8″ and like a shark, the taste of blood is making them a bit more hungry (and bold).
The first video, from a local news channel in Albuquerque, features a legislator saying the decision was “God given” and “If they want rights, there are places they can go…” referring to gays and lesbians in New Mexico. Again, I’m horrified that elected officials feel the need to have “god” driving legislation and ignore the separation of church and state. Horrified, but not surprised.
The second video below is of New Mexico Lobbyist Linda Siegel announcing the loss to DP supporters. Linda is a powerhouse and I worked with her personally when I was served on boards in Santa Fe. The blonde woman next to her is Patti Bushee, a member of the Santa Fe City Council (and a lesbian) and my former Santa Fe landlord. It’s great to see them even if its via YouTube and under less than pleasurable circumstances.
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