this time in Maine, hardly a conservative stronghold - have voted down same-sex marriage. Leaving what she thought would be a victory party after last week's balloting, an emotional Cecelia Burnett said, "I don't understand what the fear is, why people are so afraid of this change." ...more

November 13, 2009

Come on, Ginny In response to Ginny Brown-Waite ("Letter over Obama Nobel criticized," Metro, Oct. 28): Are you kidding me? ...more

November 1, 2009

Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has endorsed a third-party candidate over the GOP-backed contender in New York's congressional special election, saying her own party has abandoned its core values. ...more

October 23, 2009

A straw vote suggests former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is a favorite among religious conservatives to be president in 2012. ...more

September 19, 2009

Officials of the Miss California USA pageant have strongly criticized titleholder Carrie Prejean but say it's not their decision whether she should be stripped of her crown.. ...more

May 11, 2009

Miss California says a Web site has posted racy photos of her in an attempt to belittle her Christianity. ...more

May 5, 2009

Former Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy has been invited to join a White House faith-based advisory council. ...more

March 31, 2009

Mary Ritchie, a Massachusetts State Police trooper, has been married for almost five years and has two children. But when she files her federal income tax return, she's not allowed to check the "married filing jointly" box. That's because Ritchie and her spouse, Kathleen Bush, are a gay couple, and the federal Defense of Marriage Act makes them ineligible to file joint tax returns. Now Ritchie, Bush and more than a dozen others are suing the federal government, claiming the act discriminates against gay couples and is unconstitutional because it denies them access to federal benefits that other married couples receive, such as pensions and health insurance. Plaintiffs also include Dean Hara, the widower of former U.S. Rep. Gerry Studds, the first openly gay member of the House of Representatives. ...more

March 3, 2009

In 1996, as a freshman member of the House of Representatives, I wrote the Defense of Marriage Act, better known by its shorthand acronym, DOMA, than its legal title. ...more

January 11, 2009

The inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama is nearing and controversy has already begun to erupt about the historic event. Obama has asked the Rev. Rick Warren, senior pastor of Saddleback Church and the best-selling author of the "Purpose Driven Life," to provide the opening prayer of the inaugural ceremony. That this popular and well-respected Christian leader would be tapped for the invocation has upset many on the far left and in the gay community. ...more

January 3, 2009