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Pro-family activism that makes a difference! | ||||
Delaware General Assembly votes on 'gay marriage' this Tuesday. It's down to one vote in Senate!Pro-family forces fighting hard POSTED: May 3, 2013Will the "gay marriage" blitzkrieg be stopped in Delaware? The next few days will tell. It's down to the wire. It's a battle that been percolating for the last two years, but in recent weeks it has come to a head. This Tuesday, May 7, "gay marriage" in Delaware comes down to the final showdown when the state Senate votes on the "gay marriage" bill. It passed the House last week. At this point it's very close. We're told it's down to one vote in the Senate - and the lobbying on both sides is furious.
Pro-family forces vs homosexual lobbyIt's been a big challenge to say the least. The homosexual lobby is working in concert with their national organizations and the state's top politicians, particularly the Governor. They're very well funded, well organized, and professionally staffed. They've been on the ground in Delaware for over two years following a well-crafted strategy to push "gay marriage" into law. And of course, the mainstream media carries their water.
But the pro-family forces are fighting back extremely well. The Delaware Family Policy Council (DFPC) is the primary organizing group. They have made up for their lower funding with passion and people. They've informed and organized churches and citizens statewide and held numerous rallies and lobbying sessions.
In addition, they have passed out hundreds of copies of the MassResistance booklet "What same-sex 'marriage' has done to Massachusetts" to churches, citizens, and legislators. This has helped make a difference, they say. "It's really opened people's eyes," says Nicole Theis, executive director of DFPC.
Timeline: How the "gay marriage" bill came to DelawareThe road to "gay marriage" in Delaware was the result of a well-funded and well-planned operation by the homosexual movement, both locally and nationally. April 2011: Civil Unions passed. The "gay marriage" bill came to Delaware much the same way it started many other states: with a Trojan-horse Civil Union law. In April 2011, the Delaware General Assembly passed a homosexual civil unions bill after a well-planned strategy funded largely by the national homosexual group Human Rights Campaign. They worked through a newly formed front group, Equality Delaware. The homosexual lobby told the public and the politicians then that civil unions was all they wanted. But privately they realized that it was the only the best they could do at that time. But with their foot in the door they could leverage their lobbying experience and initial success toward their actual goal: "gay marriage." For a great description of this deception, see the DFPC article "They Lied". March 2012: Preparing for "gay marriage" legislation. Within months, the "gay marriage" trial balloons began to float. In March 2012, pro-gay Governor Jack Markel told Reuters that he thought "gay marriage" in Delaware was inevitable and a bill will be filed "probably within the next few years." A few months later, Markel told the Huffington Post that he expected it in the next session, in 2013. January 2013: Heavy lobbying began, but no bill was filed. As the new session began, it was clear that a "gay marriage" bill would be filed. The homosexual lobby had begun lobbying hard for "gay marriage" and was obviously spending a lot of money. The homosexual lobby's strategy (as in other states) was shrewd and dishonest. They would begin lobbying House and Senate members as hard as they could on the concept "gay marriage," but would wait as long as possible before actually filing a "gay marriage" bill. This strategy had several advantages. First, pro-family people would approach their reps and senators about it, but they would be told, "There's no bill even filed, so why are you bothering me with this?" This made them feel foolish and confused, and undermined the pro-family organizers. Second, during that time the General Assembly was taking up more oppressive gun legislation, a repeal of the death penalty, and other bills that kept many pro-family activists occupied and less able to work on "gay marriage," which the homosexual lobby continued to focus on. And third, when the bill was finally filed, the pro-homosexual forces could pick the day and move very quickly to push it through with all their ducks in order, and our side would have little time to react. Nevertheless, the Delaware Family Policy Council was on top of it from the beginning and began working with churches across the state and lobbied hard in the House and Senate. By all accounts, DFPC they did an outstanding job to counter effectively the push by homosexual activists. From February into April they held rallies and "town meetings" in numerous locations, and many lobby sessions in the State House. At one point, a thousand citizens came to the State House to lobby their legislators.
In mid-January, DFPC contacted MassResistance. We discussed strategy issues. But we also allowed them to publish and distribute unlimited copies of our booklet on "What same-sex 'marriage' has done to Massachusetts." They were given out across the state. In March DFPC held a huge meeting of 600 pastors, where each one was given a copy of the booklet. They also used it extensively in direct lobbying efforts with in individual legislators. According to all the pro-family people we spoke to, the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) unfortunately has been only been only marginally active in this fight. They've done pro-marriage robo-calls, but that's all anyone can recall. NOM has not worked directly with DFPC on any lobbying or strategy, or contacted them at all. However, DFPC has received information and related help from Family Research Council and Alliance Defense Fund, they said. As with many pro-marriage groups, DFPC's biggest problem has been getting sufficient funding. (You can donate to them HERE.) April 2013: Bill was finally filed and pushed through House. On April 11 the "gay marriage" bill was officially filed, with the Governor as its lead cheerleader. On April 17 it breezed through a House Committee hearing. And on April 23 it passed the full House by 23-18 -- much closer than predicted, with strong opposition during debate from a number of Republicans. Five Democrats voted against it and one Republican voted for it. Coming to a head in the State SenateAs expected, the real battle is in the Senate. The first stop was on Wednesday, May 1, in the Senate Executive Committee. The Committee held a public hearing for the bill which was only 90 minutes long. (Delaware's public hearings are very structured and people are only given two minutes to talk.) Then the Committee quickly voted it through, which was not unexpected given its makeup. Just before the hearing, DFPC gathered 75 pro-family pastors from across the state for a powerful press conference. (See article and video.) The excitement at that event gave the individual pastors a big emotional lift. That was followed by more citizen lobbying inside, throughout the day.
And it's continuing until Tuesday. Having seen what happened in Rhode Island -- with two "pro-family" state reps suddenly defecting under the pressure -- they aren't letting up one bit. This will be a very busy weekend, for sure! Pulling out all the stopsBoth sides are pulling out all the stops on this one. There's always the possibility of a weak link on either side, but it's basically down to one vote. The homosexual lobby is using their usual tactics of emotion, political threats, and intimidation But DFPC has an army of churches and citizens who are really holding their senators' feet to the fire.
We'll let you know what happens. If things turn out right, this would be a big defeat for the homosexual movement, with momentum that would likely carry into other states. |
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