The Iowa Independent reports that right-wing religious extremists are attempting to circumvent House rules to bring an anti-gay marriage bill to the floor of the legislature: "'Right-wing extremists are resorting to underhanded tactics in an attempt to take away the freedom to marry. While legislative leadership has stood firm in support of equality, extremists are attempting to overthrow House rules and push an anti-marriage amendment to the floor,' said Brad Clark, One Iowa’s campaign director. The group is asking members to call the capitol switchboard and e-mail legislators showing their support for same-sex marriage. In the closing days of the ...

Gay marriage vs. monogamy, NFL player accused of forcing himself on a trans woman, CBS declines gay ad (we have the video), and the rest of Friday’s gay headlines. • Trans woman charges forcible sodomy against NFL cornerback Eric Green (top photo). The alleged incident took place in Arizona before he was traded to Miami. • Gay friendly scholars handicap the outcome of the Prop 8 trial. Testimony ended Wednesay, and final arguments aren’t due for a few more weeks. • Men caught on video sought by police in a Phoenix gay bar shooting. After an altercation with the DJ and the doorman, ...

Current laws aren't discriminatory enough for Governor Fortuño: "While Puerto Rican laws already ban same-sex marriages and prohibit the recognition of same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions, religious organizations fear the laws could be changed by future governing administrations and thus are seeking a constitutional ban on gay marriages....Previous attempts at the local Legislature to approve a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, such as the so-called Resolution 99, have failed...Gay rights activist Pedro Julio Serrano blasted the governor over his position on same-sex marriage. 'Finally, we learn the truth about his posture on Resolution 99. For months, he hid behind a language so as not to appear ...

How very ... unexpected.FiveThirtyEight: Politics Done Right: Divorce Rates Higher in States with Gay Marriage Bans Over the past decade or so, divorce has gradually become more uncommon in the United States. Since 2003, however, the decline in divorce rates has been largely confined to states which have not passed a state constitutional ban on gay marriage. These states saw their divorce rates decrease by an average of 8 percent between 2003 and 2008. States which had passed a same-sex marriage ban as of January 1, 2008, however, saw their divorce rates rise by about 1 percent over the same ...

Texas? In a first for Texas, a judge ruled Thursday that two men married in another state can divorce here and that the state’s ban on gay marriage violates the U.S. Constitution. Both a voter-approved state constitutional amendment and the Texas Family Code prohibit same-sex marriages or civil unions. Although the case is far from settled, and the state’s constitutional ban on gay marriage is a long way from being thrown out, Dallas state District Judge Tena Callahan’s ruling says the state prohibition of same-sex marriage violates the federal constitutional right to equal protection. . . . “This is ...

Fair Wisconsin will ask the Wisconsin Supreme Court to reject a challenge to the state's domestic partner law by Wisconsin Family Action, which wants the law declared unconstitutional, The Northwestern reports: "Nine-hundred seventy couples have been added to the registry since the law went into effect in August, Department of Health Services spokeswoman Stephanie Marquis said. Registering gives them limited legal protections such as the right to visit each other in the hospital, take medical leave to care for an ill partner and inherit assets when a partner dies. 'We are filing to intervene so that we can ...