Rod 2.0:Beta

News: Vanessa Williams, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Tom Varndell

· Gay veteran speaks out against "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" in a Wall Street Journal op-ed.

· Everything you always wanted to know about rugby phenom Tom Varndell but were afraid to ask.

· An Illinois House committee advances a civil unions bill, the Chicago Tribune reports. "If it becomes law, the bill would make Illinois the sixth state to approve civil unions, meant to give same-sex couples the same 'basic rights' as married couples, said sponsoring Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago). 'It appears that people have a concern with the intermingling of religious and civil marriage,' Harris said. 'But a lot of people, the vast majority, believe that all couples deserve basic rights.' Harris said. Harris said he is unsure if he has enough support for the measure to pass the full House."

· San Francisco police arrest 175 anti-Prop 8 protesters.

· Sen. Barbara Boxer on Rachel Maddow: "The California Supreme Court was right the first time they decided on marriage. Ron George, a Republican, wrote this beautiful decision that you have to have the same rules of marriage. We're going to have to go back to the ballot."

· Vanessa Williams talks to Out.com about her new CD The Real Thing and her role as Wilhelmina Slater on Ugly Betty. "I absolutely love her. It’s a ball to work on, and it just gets more and more delicious every season. We are going to be doing a musical episode where everyone is going to sing. I also sang in the season finale this year with Christine Baranski. Every season they give me more and more things to do. I’m playing tennis with Billie Jean King. I’m speaking French. It just seems like Wilhelmina is an expert at everything. The challenge is always looking like everything is effortless."

· There are competing marriage bills in Pennsylvania. "Sen. Daylin Leach (D) announced his marriage equality bill on Wednesday. The bill would provide 'full and equal marriage rights to same-sex couples in Pennsylvania', said Leach. The legislation also would recognize same-sex marriages conducted in other areas where they are legal. Earlier this month, Republican state Sen. John Eichelberger filed a bill to amend the state constitution to limit marriage to opposite-sex couples. The state already has a so-called Defense of Marriage law limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples."

News: Gabrielle Union, Dobson, Hagee, Pharrell, Domestic Violence

· Two years ago in an interview with OUT, Gabrielle Union said, "You're nobody until someone says you're gay." The actress returns to the magazine to glam it up and share some advice with the boys.

· Should rabidly anti-gay demagogue James Dobson be recognized by the Radio Hall of Fame? Truth Wins Out launches petition drive to keep the hateful Focus on the Family founder out of the museum. "It is outrageous and insulting that James Dobson would be nominated for the Radio Hall of Fame," says TWO Executive Director Wayne Besen. "We believe that character counts and nominees should have careers based on honesty and integrity—not discrimination, distorting research and outright lying."

· Huffington Post: Lawyers for anti-gay evangelical Rev. John Hagee force YouTube to remove more than 120 videos of the controversial pastor.

· Pharrell Williams to undergo exotic tattoo removal procedure "that involves growing new skin."

· Cher laughs off rumors of a(nother) quickie wedding.

· Domestic violence and gay relationships, coast to coast. Los Angeles: City Council creates subcommittee "aimed at reducing incidents of domestic violence among same-sex couples [because ] often times police officers do not know what to do when they respond to a situation that involves violence between gay and lesbian partners." New York: Gay friendly Gov. David Paterson wants to expand domestic violence law to include dating relationships.

· Kenyan Anglican bishop threatens to quit the church over same-sex marriages. The Reverend Thomas Kogo believes gay rights activists are driven by ... "desire" for money and wealth. "God recognizes marriage between man and woman, and there is no way we will accept homosexuality and gay marriages. The Bible is very clear on the matter."

· A bidding war erupts over Ivorian footballer and Rod 2.0 fave Didier Drogba. "Despite continuing rumours that Didier Drogba will be heading to Milan this summer, Chelsea's new manager is "200%" sure the phenom will remain in England. Meanwhile .... "Marseilles fans have launched an appeal to raise £22m in order to buy" Drogba's contract.

· NTSB unsure of cause of recent problem with Obama's campaign plane but investigation does "not reveal any evidence of missing components, nor any evidence of tampering."

· White House caught suppressing data on global warming.

"In a letter to Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), former White House official Jason Burnett revealed that Vice President Cheney’s office deleted portions of the testimony of Center for Disease Control Director Julie Gerberding, who testified last year about the consequences of climate change on public health. In a press conference yesterday, Boxer charged that White House spokesperson Dana Perino had 'lied' about the rationale behind the editing of the testimony: 'As I understand it, she said, the draft information did not comport with that, the science that was in the IPCC report. This was a lie. And we proved it before. We had in the last press conference we did on this.' "

Senate Ethics Committee Says Larry Craig Acted Improperly

The Senate Ethics Committee publicly admonishes Larry Craig, the de-closeted right-wing, anti-gay Idaho for acting "improperly" in connection with a men's room sex sting last year. From The Hill:

The public letter of admonition signed by all six panel members also criticized Craig for attempting to withdraw his guilty plea. They said Craig seemed to be calculating that by pleading guilty, he would avoid public disclosure and adverse public reaction to his arrest.

The Ethics Committee also admonished the outed bathroom cruiser for "improper conduct which has reflected discreditably on the Senate" and criticized Craig "for showing the arresting officer a business card that identified him as a U.S. senator."

Craig has denied he is gay or has had sexual relations with men, although reports suggest Senate Republican leadership " knew" Larry Craig was "in the closet" with a "weird problem" but "didn't do anything about it." In December, the Idaho Statesman published five damning reports by gay men who described having sex, or, being propositioned by Sen. Larry Craig,

Republicans in Idaho and in Washington are outraged after Craig's promise to serve out the remaining 15 months of his term, despite a court ruling that left intact his guilty plea in the sex sting.

The Senate Ethics Committee is chaired by California's Barbara Boxer. Just as an fyi, weeks after his arrest, Craig began taking partisan swipes at Boxer and her proposed global warming legislation. What goes around, comes around ...

Craig Admonished By Ethics Panel [The Hill]
Panel Says Craig Acted Improperly [365 Gay]

More LARRY CRAIG.
More REPUBLICANS

Some Background ...
A Tale of Two Cities [Advocate]
"Romney Threw Me Under the Bus" [R20]
Craig Inducted into Idaho Hall of Fame [R20]
5 Gay Men Describe Sexual Encounters with Craig [R20]
Senate Republicans Knew About "Closeted" Larry Craig's "Weird Problem" [R20]
Larry Craig Vows to Remain in Office [R20]
Larry Craig Pays a Surprise Visit to Senate [R20]
News: Larry Craig Latest, David Vitter [R20]
Larry Craig Latest: "Not Guilty!" [R20]
Craig Latest: Wasn't Going to Run for Re-Election [R20]
Craig Latest: Maybe I Won't Resign After All [R20]
Craig Resigns Senate Seat [R20]
RNC to Larry Craig: Resign or Else [R20]
NY Post Runs "Are You a Gay Senator?" Quiz [R20]
Idaho's Largest Paper Calls for Craig's Resignation [R20]

Republican Sen. Vitter Subpoenaed Regarding Hiring of Prostitutes

The Republican sex scandal hit parade keeps growing stronger. David Vitter, the Louisiana senator who was implicated but never charged in connection with the "DC Madam" scandal, has now been subpoenaed as part of the federal investigation. The Huffington Post reports the subpoena "calls on the freshman senator to testify at a federal court hearing Nov. 28 looking into the business operations of the $2 million escort service Deborah Jeane Palfrey operated in the nation's capital for 13 years."

This news is simply delicious. The anti-gay, "family values" Vitter acknowledges being a client of Palfrey's escort service but refuses to comment upon his relationship with other prostitutes. (Possibly because the call girls have publicly mocked Vitter's small pee-pee?) Earlier this week, The Hill reported the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force formally wrote a "strongly worded letter" to Ethics Committee Chair Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Ranking Member Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), criticizing their investigation of closeted latrine queen Sen. Larry Craig (R-Minneapolis Airport) because "he allegedly solicited gay sex but has ignored allegations of impropriety involving Sen. David Vitter because Vitter’s alleged behavior was heterosexual."

There certainly is a double standard in the treatment of the well-publicized extra-curricular activities of the sleazy senators—we essayed this same topic in our new column—but the (stalled) investigation into Larry Craig was launched by his former friends in the Senate Republican caucus. They can initiate an investigation into Vitter or drop the probe that was launched of Craig. It's not our problem. But the thought of Vitter testifying under oath about hiring prostitutes ... that's precious.

More POLITICS.
More REPUBLICAN PARTY.

You May Have Missed ....
A Tale of Two Cities [Advocate]
News: Larry Craig Latest, David Vitter [R20]
Anti-Gay Sen. Vitter on DC Madam's Client List [R20]
Report: Anti-Gay Senator Patronized Brothel [R20]

Larry Craig Takes a "Wide Stance" Against Hillary and Global Warming

The anti-gay and de-closeted right wing Sen. Larry Craig (R-Minneapolis Airport) returns from self-imposed exile to toe-tap his way back into partisan politics. The outed bathroom cruiser takes a "wide-stance" with familiar conservative broadsides against global warming legislation and Senate Energy Committee Chair Barbara Boxer.

Sam Stein at the Huffington Post:

"We need to perform a fair and responsible vetting of all the climate change alternatives before us," Craig said. "My position is perfectly clear: a cap and trade system is obsolete in its approach to green house gas reductions, it has not worked, and I do not see it working."

Later in the statement, Craig offered back-handed praise to Hillary Clinton for what he says is her similar approach to global warming. Noting his support for a "sector by sector trading approach," Craig said, "I was pleased to see that Senator Clinton supports a similar approach, albeit on the unrealistic side given her political realities."

Boxer and Hillary Clinton are familiar right-wing piñatas and, normally, juicy red meat for the base. Apparently, none of Larry Craig's Republican colleagues are interested in joining his virtual gangbang. Wonder why. In the words of Craig's arresting officer: "Embarrassing, embarrassing. No wonder why we're going down the tubes!"

Some Background ...
A Tale of Two Cities [Advocate]
"Mitt Romney Threw Me Under the Bus, Ran Me Over Twice" [R20]
Craig Inducted into Idaho Hall of Fame [R20]
Senate Republicans Knew About "Closeted" Larry Craig's "Weird Problem" [R20]
Larry Craig Vows to Remain in Office [R20]
Larry Craig Pays a Surprise Visit to Senate [R20]
News: Larry Craig Latest, David Vitter [R20]
Larry Craig Latest: "Not Guilty!" [R20]
Craig Latest: Wasn't Going to Run for Re-Election [R20]
Craig Latest: Maybe I Won't Resign After All [R20]
Craig Resigns Senate Seat [R20]
RNC to Larry Craig: Resign or Else [R20]
NY Post Runs "Are You a Gay Senator?" Quiz [R20]
Idaho's Largest Paper Calls for Craig's Resignation [R20]