In his column this week for The Huffington Post, The RP applauds Kentucky’s Lt. Governor Jerry Abramson and Auditor Adam Edelen for their brave announcements this week in support of marriage equality:
Edelen & Abramson
As I proudly watched public sentiment dramatically shift on the subject over the past few years, I still didn’t expect any active statewide politicians in my old (conservative) Kentucky home to join me. After all, a recently released 2012 poll showed that support for marriage equality among Kentucky voters dramatically trailed the national average — at an embarrassing 33% approval clip.
Worse, in the recently-concluded session of the Kentucky General Assembly, a vast majority of Democratic and Republican legislators joined together to override Governor Steve Beshear’s brave veto of legislation — posed misleadingly as a “religious freedom bill” — that could undermine ordinances in Lexington and Louisville that protect the LGBT community from job and housing discrimination. If politicians couldn’t stand for simple fairness, how could they be brave enough to support marriage equality?
However, with nearly the entire U.S. Senate Democratic majority lining up to legalize same-sex marriage, one liberal Kentucky columnist — LEO Weekly‘s Joe Sonka — decided to put the state’s five Democratic statewide elected constitutional officers to the test, asking each of them their position on the issue. Sonka’s tweets revealed his skepticism about their responses: He guessed two would say “no,” two wouldn’t respond, and one would offer gibberish.
But then the unexpected happened. First Lt. Governor Jerry Abramson, the former uber-popular “Mayor-for-Life” of Louisville announced his support:
“I don’t believe government should judge which adults can and which cannot make a loving, life-long commitment to each other. That’s why both Madeline and I support marriage equality for all adults.”
And then, within a few hours, Auditor Adam Edelen — who at 38 is one of the Democrats’ bright young stars — declared his support, arguing:
“I believe equal protection of the law and equality of opportunity are central to the American experiment and they ought to apply to every American.”
I know both Abramson and Edelen well, and understand that their announcements came from their sincere support of the true American value of equality for all. But I also can attest that both are very savvy politicians, who wouldn’t stake out a position that could result in their imminent political demise. They understand that in the 2o15 gubernatorial race — which both men are considering — support for marriage equality will no longer be a disqualifier in the general election, and could indeed be a pre-requisite for winning a Democratic primary.
And if you too support marriage equality, I urge you to thank Jerry Abramson and Adam Edelen for their statements. We are always bad-mouthing politicians that disappoint us. So, why not thank true leaders when they make a selfless, brave announcement? And if they accrue some political mileage out of their actions, it will encourage others to follow their lead and join the marriage equality bandwagon.
Click here to sign a petition thanking Kentucky Lt. Governor Jerry Abramson, and click here to sign a petition thanking Kentucky Auditor Adam Edelen.
By Jonathan Miller, on Wed Apr 10, 2013 at 8:30 AM ET
An historic week for equality in my old (conservative) Kentucky home…
Despite the fact that a recently released 2012 poll showed that support for marriage equality among Kentucky voters dramatically trailed the national average at an embarrassing 33% approval clip (although, I imagine that has ticked higher in the intervening few months), leading statewide elected officials are courageously coming forward to endorse marriage equality.
Early yesterday LEO Weekly magazine’s Joe Sonka broke the news that Kentucky’s Lt. Governor, Jerry Abramson, became the first active statewide official to endorse marriage equality.
Within a few hours, state Auditor Adam Edelen bravely took the plunge as well. Edelen declared his support for marriage equality because:
“I believe equal protection of the law and equality of opportunity are central to the American experiment and they ought to apply to every American.”
(And let’s give Joe Sonka some mad props for his simple, but groundbreaking questioning. Tweet at the dirty liberal columnist: @JoeSonka)
But most of all, please join me in expressing our support and gratitude to Auditor Adam Edelen for his courageous public statement by signing on to this petition below:
Thanks Auditor Edelen for Supporting Marriage Equality!
In the Spotlight: Goal of No Labels is to get lawmakers to stop fighting
By Jonathan Miller
Democrats and Republicans in Washington can’t seem to agree on much these days, but four members of Illinois’ congressional delegation are working to change that by joining No Labels’ fast-growing group of Congressional Problem Solvers. The group — first announced just two months ago with a dozen members — now features 55 members who are meeting regularly to build trust across the aisle.
Reps. Rodney Davis, Adam Kinzinger, Dan Lipinski and Cheri Bustos are part of something unprecedented. Ask any member of Congress and they will tell you that before the advent of the Problem Solvers, there was literally no forum where rank-and-file Democrats and Republicans could actually meet together to discuss solutions. It’s a shocking revelation and a big reason why dysfunction has dominated D.C.
With Democrats controlling the U.S. Senate and Republicans controlling the U.S. House of Representatives, no one can get everything they want. Our Problem Solvers recognize that they have to find a way to work together or else they will get nothing done
In linking up with No Labels, the Illinois representatives are helping supercharge a movement that is growing by the day. I helped launch No Labels in December 2010 as a group of Democrats, Republicans and independents dedicated to a new politics of problem solving. Today, we have hundreds of thousands of grassroots supporters across the country. We have a growing presence on Capitol Hill, as evidenced by the emerging Problem Solvers. And we have a serious government reform agenda that is gaining traction.
In fact, the Senate passed a budget for the first time in four years last month thanks in large part to a measure that No Labels created and pushed relentlessly. We have an idea in our Make Congress Work! action plan called No Budget, No Pay that is as simple as it sounds: Members of Congress don’t get paid if they don’t pass a budget on time.
A modified version of No Budget, No Pay passed as part of the debt ceiling extension bill in February, and clearly compelled Congress to get serious about timely budgets.
We’re just getting started. On April 16, I’ll be flying the No Labels flag alongside an exciting lineup of speakers at the “Returning Civility to Our Public Discourse” Symposium at Bradley University in Peoria. The event is open to everyone. In the meantime, you can visit NoLabels.org to learn more about how regular citizens can get our leaders to stop fighting and start fixing America’s problems.
By Jonathan Miller, on Tue Apr 9, 2013 at 9:00 AM ET
In this morning’s LEO Weekly magazine, Joe Sonka breaks the news that Kentucky’s Lt. Governor, Jerry Abramson, has become the first active statewide official to endorse marriage equality.
“I don’t believe government should judge which adults can and which cannot make a loving, life-long commitment to each other. That’s why both Madeline and I support marriage equality for all adults.”
Mazel Tov to a real mensch, and a true leader for Kentucky.
Please join me in expressing our support and gratitude to Lt. Gov. Abramson for his courageous public statement by signing on to this petition below:
Thanks Lt. Gov. Abramson for Supporting Marriage Equality
By Jonathan Miller, on Fri Apr 5, 2013 at 7:30 AM ET
Last night, the RP appeared on Current TV’s “The Young Turls” with Cenk Uygar to discuss his column from yesterday, “The Ashley Judd ‘Rape Comment’ That Just Won’t Go Away.”
By John Y. Brown III, on Thu Apr 4, 2013 at 12:00 PM ET
Basketball and bigger things
Our state’s greatest challenge –and why the UL Cards don’t get the same statewide love the Hilltoppers do?
There are 418 cities in Kentucky.
Citizens in 417 of them —when asked where they live–say Kentucky
Citizens from the 418th city–when asked where they live– say Louisville
… One day, it’s my hope, we’ll be one Kentucky. We have a lot more in common than we believe. A lot more.
It requires attitudes to change inside Louisville (no city is an island) and across the state (no state today can afford to marginalize its largest economic engine–or not feel connected to its only remaining team in the NCAA basketball tournament.
From whatever city we hail, each has the same last name. Even my city’s full name, after all, is “Louisville, Kentucky”
By Jonathan Miller, on Wed Mar 27, 2013 at 5:10 PM ET
In a message to her followers on Twitter and at her Web site, actress and humanitarian Ashley Judd announced today that she will not be running in 2014 for Kentucky’s U.S. Senate seat currently held by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Here is her statement:
After serious and thorough contemplation, I realize that my responsibilities & energy at this time need to be focused on my family. Regretfully, I am currently unable to consider a campaign for the Senate. I have spoken to so many Kentuckians over these last few months who expressed their desire for a fighter for the people & new leader. While that won’t be me at this time, I will continue to work as hard as I can to ensure the needs of Kentucky families are met by returning this Senate seat to whom it rightfully belongs: the people & their needs, dreams, and great potential. Thanks for even considering me as that person & know how much I love our Commonwealth. Thank you!
As someone who had encouraged Ashley to consider the race, this obviously wasn’t the announcement I was hoping for. Her celebrity platform would have enabled a desperately-needed debate on critical matters of public policy such as poverty remediation, women’s health, environmental protection and economic growth. Her compassionate and incorruptable worldview would have made her an extraordinary U.S. Senator.
But as her friend, and as someone who has joyfully left the political arena — in part because of the brutal way modern politics treats candidates and their families — I can completely understand and commiserate with her decision.
I am also quite confident that we haven’t seen the last of Ashley as a potential candidate, particularly after she has had a chance to throughly put to rest questions about her residency and her commitment to public service in her home state of Kentucky.
I’m also very optimistic that Kentucky Democrats can identify a strong, serious candidate to challenge McConnell. So I encourage all Judd fans to join me in supporting the Democratic nominee, whoever she or he turns out to be.
UPDATED 7:30 PM 3/27
This is going to sound like typical politician horse-hockey, but I’ve been both blown away and amused at the dozens of emails and Facebook messages I have received encouraging me to run against Senator McConnell now that Ashley Judd has withdrawn from the race.
With sincere gratitude to all that have contacted me, I hereby issue the following statement:
STATEMENT OF JONATHAN MILLER ON THE PROSPECTS OF HIS RUNNING FOR THE U.S. SENATE IN KENTUCKY AGAINST MITCH MCCONNELL IN 2014
Hells No!
UPDATED 8:00 PM 3/27
Tune in to CBS This Morning tomorrow at 7:00 AM to catch me talking about Ashley’s decision not to run for the U.S. Senate. Check out the picture of our taping at right.
We will post the full video of the appearance below as soon as it is available.
UPDATED 10:30 AM 3/28
Here’s the clip of my appearance on CBS This Morning:
By John Y. Brown III, on Tue Mar 26, 2013 at 12:00 PM ET
About once or twice a year I go through a full service car wash
The first time I knew they existed I was a small boy with my mom and she explained what was going on as I watched on with wonder from the lobby area.
I much prefer the self-service car washes because you don’t have to get out of your car and wait 10–15 min in a wait area.
Which can be awkward
I am in the waiting area now and have watched two grown men (one about 60 and the other mid 40s) stand with their back to the rest of us pretending to watch the car wash process with the wonder of a small boy
I have to assume they aren’t really entranced by this process which –though still remarkable in many ways—losses much of its mystery by ones teen years
I suspect instead it is a defense mechanism to the awkward waiting room. What do you talk about to fellow customers?
“So, have a dirty car today, do ya?
Me too”
So instead we pretend to watch the washing process like we did as children
But I am different. I don’t have the need to pretend to be busy so I don’t have to make conversation. Oh, wait a minute. A new customer just sat down next to me. I need to walk outside and pretend like I am making a phone call.
By Jonathan Miller, on Tue Mar 26, 2013 at 11:00 AM ET
It is fitting that on the first day of Passover — a holiday on which Jews all over the world celebrate freedom — the U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments on this generation’s most critical and high-profile civil rights issue: marriage equality. While the fate of this particular decision is in doubt, demographic surveys clearly demonstrate that it is only a matter of time before same-sex marriage is legally sanctioned across the nation.
(Here’s my endorsement of marriage equality — two years old, but still very timely.)
Today, we are also reminded by the continued staying power of Mark Twain’s famous statement that Kentucky is always twenty years behind the rest of the country. It was a close call, but it appears that the Kentucky General Assembly will ignore popular sentiment and override Governor Steve Beshear’s courageous veto of legislation that threatens anti-discrimination laws passed by several Kentucky cities to protect the civil rights of the LGBT community. We can only pray that the bill — regretfully styled as a “religious freedom” effort — simply represents the last throes of an anti-freedom insurgency that will be thoroughly quashed when our younger generations take power, wielding their commitment to tolerance, compassion and the universal value of loving our neighbors as ourselves.
And so I remind my freedom-loving, equal rights-embracing friends, be they Democrats, Republicans or Independents — that time is on our side. The Pharoah-ic force that continues to push against, in King’s words, “the arc of the moral universe… [that] bends toward justice,” will some day be forced to let our people go.
