Dear Friends of Marriage,

What a week it has been.  What an election for marriage! 
 
Maine, first and foremost, where you–through your sacrifices and your courage and your fundamental decency–helped NOM put to rest the great lie that gay marriage is inevitable.
 
We can win this fight!  Last week we did!
 
The repercussions of that great victory are rippling across the country, especially when multiplied by the defeat of pro-gay marriage Republican Dede Scozzafava in NY-23 and the victory of pro-life, pro-marriage GOP governor Chris Christie in New Jersey. 
 
Congratulations to the New Jersey Family Policy Council, where Gov. Christie chose, in a surprise appearance, to make it clear he’s a man of his word: He will veto any gay marriage bill that crosses his desk. (And I want to thank Joseph Backholm of the Family Policy Institute of Washington, who sent NOM this note: ”We wait for the final results on Referendum-71 here in Washington. I wanted to thank the supporters of the National Organization for Marriage for your help, which we very much appreciated.  Congratulations on the victory in Maine. That was incredibly encouraging.  We look forward to working with you on the battles we know are still to come here in Washington.”  Back at you!)
 
Gay-marriage advocates will fight hard to push a bill through the lame-duck session in New Jersey.  And tomorrow Gov. Paterson is going to try to force legislators to take up a special emergency gay-marriage bill.  Special emergency?  Really Governor, can’t gay marriage wait until you figure out how to balance the budget amid a collapsing economy?
 
New York’s gay marriage bill is special all right–special-interest politicking at its most naked and visible.
 
We will keep you in this fight to the end.
 
But today I want to let you know what good you’ve already done, by joining together with the 500,000 other marriage defenders who work with NOM. (Help us push that up to one million by the end of the year by sending this email to three friends today!)
 
Frank Schubert, campaign manager for both Prop 8 and the Maine vote, sent NOM’s board an email the night of the election.  Congratulations, he said, you’ve broken the back of gay marriage movement.  Never again will they be able to persuade their donors and activists that they can win at the ballot box.  Because, he said, they can’t.
 
Look at these headlines to get a glimpse of how great this victory–your victory–was!
 
“Maine vote a devastating blow to gay marriage”  Christian Science Monitor, Nov. 4, 2009
“Gay Rights Rebuke May Change Approach”  New York Times, Nov. 4 2009.
“Fresh on the heels of repeal in Maine, N.H. may reconsider gay marriage”   Fosters Daily Democrat, Nov. 5, 2009
“The defeat of same-sex marriage in Maine is prompting marriage foes in New Hampshire — which now has same-sex marriage — to try again,” reports Politico, Nov. 5, 2009.
“N.Y. Gay Marriage Hope Fading?” asks the Advocate, Nov. 4, 2009.
 
Gay marriage is not inevitable because it is not based on truth or justice.   In the end truth and love will prevail.
 
God bless you and your family.  Please pray for NOM, and for all the groups and people working in this country to protect marriage.

Faithfully,

Brian S. Brown
Executive Director
National Organization for Marriage
20 Nassau Street, Suite 242
Princeton, NJ 08542
bbrown@nationformarriage.org

P.S. With your help we can fight–and win! Please consider what you can give to help NOM in the battles to come.

NOM in the News–Feature
“Maine Voters Reject Gay Marriage Law”
CBN.com
November 4, 2009

“Loss in Maine Sets Back Gay-Marriage Drive”
New York Times
November 5, 2009

But Maggie Gallagher, president of the National Organization for Marriage, the conservative Christian group that is leading the charge against same-sex marriage around the country, read the outcome differently.

“It interrupts the story line that is being manufactured, that suggests the culture has shifted on gay marriage and the fight is over,” she said. “Maine is one of the most secular states in the nation, it’s socially liberal, they had a three-year head start to build their organization and they outspent us two to one. If they can’t win there, it really does tell you the majority of Americans are not on board with this gay marriage thing.”

Maggie Gallagher with Raymond Arroyo
EWTN
October 30, 2009

NOM on TV and Radio
ABC News–Denver, CO
November 2, 2009

CBS News–San Diego, CA
November 4, 2009

National Public Radio
November 4, 2009

MSNBC
Countdown with Keith Olbermann
November 4, 2009

CNN
Anderson Cooper 360
November 4, 2009

“Maine Marriage Victory Proves Americans ‘Aren’t on Board’ with Same-Sex Marriage, Says Expert”
Catholic News Agency
November 6, 2009

NOM in the News

“Gay-Marriage Fight Heads to New Jersey”
Wall Street Journal
November 7, 2009
“New Jersey is at the very top of our list, and it’s going to happen in the next few weeks if it happens at all,” said Maggie Gallagher, the president of the National Organization for Marriage, which opposes same-sex marriages. “They’re doing it in a lame duck, because it’s as far away from an election as possible.”

“Loss in Maine Could Be Staggering Blow to Gay-Marriage Movement Nationwide”
Associated Press
November 4, 2009
Brian Brown of the National Organization for Marriage, a conservative group that steered substantial funds to fight gay marriage in both California and Maine, was elated by Tuesday’s result, saying it shows that “that even in a New England state, if the voters have a chance to have their say, they’re going to protect and defend the commonsense definition of marriage.”

“House Race in New York’s 23rd District Goes to the Democrat”
New York Times
November 3, 2009
“Our number one goal was to make clear that the Republican Party cannot take someone as liberal as Dede Scozzafava and thrust her out on the voters and expect the voters just to accept it,” said Brian Brown, executive director of the National Organization for Marriage, which worked to defeat Ms. Scozzafava, the Republican candidate who faced a challenge from Mr. Hoffman.

“Maine Vote a Devastating Blow to Gay Marriage”
Christian Science Monitor
November 4, 2009
The result will send a clear message to other state legislatures considering bills to legalize gay marriage, says Brian Brown, executive director of the New Jersey-based National Organization for Marriage, which contributed $1.8 million to the Maine campaign against the state law.

“At Stake in Maine Vote: A Potential First for Gay Marriage”
Christian Science Monitor
November 2, 2009
Brian Brown, executive director for the New Jersey-based National Organization for Marriage, was involved in the campaign to overturn gay marriage in California. In Maine, he is working with Stand for Marriage Maine, which has the same goal.

“NOM Poll: Marriage a Wedge in NY-23″
Ben Smith
Politico
November 3, 2009
As conservative groups scramble to take credit for their roles in Doug Hoffman’s surge, the National Organization for Marriage sends on a poll indicating that Dede Scozzfava’s stance on marriage put her well out of line with the district, not to mention the Republican Party.

“Marriage Victory in Maine”
National Catholic Register
November 4, 2009
“We will probably be outspent two to one, but Bishop Malone has fought hard and deserves credit for his great determination,” reported Maggie Gallagher, a marriage expert and author who founded the National Organization for Marriage after Massachusetts legalized same-sex “marriage” in 2007.

“Stakes Are High in Maine’s Vote on Gay Marriage”
Associated Press
November 3, 2009

“New England is the one area where it’s much tougher ground for us than other states,” Brown said. “The fact that in a state like Maine we’re polling relatively even shows the depth of support for saying marriage is between a man and a woman.”

“Pre-criminations in Maine”
Ben Smith
Politico
November 3, 2009

Liz Mair picks up the buzz that will get a lot louder if gay marriage in Maine — a toss-up in today’s referendum — goes down.

“I have heard complaints from some friends and contacts within the gay community that national level gay rights organizations have not done nearly enough to lock Maine down– while it is apparent that the National Organization for Marriage has been doing its thing in Maine which always has to concern marriage advocates on some level.”

“Maine Marriage to Be Decided By ‘Razor-Thin Election’”
Washington Blade
October 30, 2009
Major donors who contributed to pass Question 1 include the National Organization for Marriage, which has contributed $1.5 million since the campaign began, and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, which has contributed $550,000.

“Maine Set to Vote on Gay Marriage”
Washington Post
November 2, 2009

Questions about the largest contributor have sparked an investigation by the state ethics commission and a court battle. The National Organization for Marriage, or NOM, has contributed $1.6 million to Stand for Marriage Maine but has declined to reveal its own contributors, despite a federal district court decision last week that it must do so under Maine law.

Some groups for gays say the organization is a stalking horse for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or the Mormons, which dominated fundraising in the California campaign. Many of the actors in a nationally televised ad produced by NOM, called “Gathering Storm,” turned out to be Mormon activists.

“Maine Gay Marriage Opposition Leader Predicts Election Day Victory”
Everyday Christian
October 31, 2009
On the Yes on 1 side, the largest donor has been the National Organization for Marriage. NOM has been instrumental in helping to bankroll the heretofore state-by-state turf wars where gay marriage has become a political issue. NOM filed a lawsuit in state court to keep the names of its donors to Yes on 1 private.

“Gay Marriage Supporters Press Case”
Washington Blade
November 2, 2009
Among the witnesses opposed to the bill were Brian Brown, executive director of the National Organization for Marriage, which helps to fund ballot measures seeking to ban same-sex marriage in other states, and Rev. Water Fauntroy, D.C.’s former delegate to the House of Representative and a leading opponent in the District of same-sex marriage.

“Marriage in Maine in Dead Heat”
The Nation on National Public Radio
November 3, 2009
When it comes to funding, the National Organization for Marriage, a conservative Christian group at the forefront of battles against gay marriage in other states, has provided more than half of the $2.5 million raised by Stand for Marriage Maine.

“Maine Gay Marriage Ban Locked in Vote”
Washington Times
November 4, 2009

“That’s why this is unlike anything that’s happened before,” said Brian Brown, executive director of the National Organization for Marriage, which supports traditional marriage. “This is a chance for [gay-marriage supporters] to show the momentum is on their side, that Proposition 8 was a fluke.”

He added, “But I don’t think it was a fluke. I think Question 1 is going to win.”

“What Made Doug Hoffman?”
New York Daily News
November 3, 2009

The National Organization for Marriage did spend $113,000 to support Hoffman in NY-23, which included a poll that found 52 percent of voters in the district oppose same-sex marriage. The Human Rights Campaign is now engaged in hopes of helping Owens.

“Maine Says ‘No’ to Same-Sex Marriage, ‘Yes’ to Medical Marijuana”
Iowa Independent
November 4, 2009
Marriage equality advocates in Iowa kept a watchful eye on Maine for months, knowing one day they could have to fight that battle themselves. The organization leading the fight against same-sex marriage in Main and across the country, the National Organization for Marriage, has already vowed to dedicate time and resources in Iowa.

“Maggie Gallagher, Head of NOM, Attends Pro-Gay Marriage Rally in DC”
Metro Weekly
November 5, 2009

A surprise attendee of the rally was Maggie Gallagher, President of the National Organization for Marriage. Gallagher’s organization spearheaded the effort to repeal Maine’s same-sex marriage law, and by a small majority — 53 to 47 percent — voters opted to revoke equal marriage rights in that state. It appeared to bother some attendees of tonight’s rally that Gallagher would appear at a pro-gay marriage event, yet the estimated crowd of 120 mostly left her alone as she observed the hour-long protest.

Gallagher said she had just been at a nearby building and it was by “great coincidence” that she was passing by. She stated that she was not attending the event as part of a professional capacity and did not wish to go on camera for an interview.

“Urban, Rural Divide Defines Differing Views on Marriage”
Bangor Daily News
November 5, 2009

But Brian Brown of the National Organization for Marriage, a conservative group that funded much of the Yes on 1 campaign, said Tuesday’s result shows “that even in a New England state, if the voters have a chance to have their say, they’re going to protect and defend the common-sense definition of marriage.” Four of the five states that have legalized same-sex marriage are in New England.

Brown also suggested that the outcome in Maine will give pause to lawmakers in New York and New Jersey, where gay-marriage legislation is pending.

“Social Conservatives Sense a Change in the Political Weather”
Los Angeles Times
November 4, 2009

“It’s a crushing blow to those who think same-sex marriage is inevitable,” Brown said. “They were 100% wrong…In a deep blue state, when voters had the chance, they voted to protect marriage for a man and a woman.”

Dear Friends of Marriage,

The National Organization for Marriage has again, because of your support and work, played a key role in changing the course of history on marriage. As the largest contributor to the Yes on 1 effort in Maine, NOM spent almost all that it had (literally!), a total of $1.8 million dollars, because we knew the singular importance of a victory in Maine. 

How important was Maine’s vote? Consider these facts:

• National gay marriage groups saw Maine as their opportunity to, in their words, “break” the growing national movement to protect marriage. Winning at the ballot box would have shifted the momentum in their direction after our victory in Proposition 8. They made Maine their rallying cry, and truly believed that they were going to win.
• Maine gay marriage groups spent four years building a sophisticated grassroots organization unlike anything that we have seen. In a state with a population of only 1.3 million, No on 1 had 8,000 (yes 8,000!) volunteers in the field knocking on tens of thousands of doors and making hundreds of thousands of phone calls.
• Maine is a deep blue New England state. At the same time Maine voters rejected same-sex marriage, they approved extending the legalization of marijuana by a 59%-41% margin, and rejected a tax-limiting scheme 60% to 40%.
• We were grossly outspent by nearly two to one.

Yet we won in Maine by an even larger margin than we won in California.

And understand this: If we can win in Maine, WE CAN WIN ANYWHERE!

This is obviously because of your prayers, dedication, and hard work. But it also is because of the team that NOM has built to go into any state and make the arguments and run the campaign to win. Frank Schubert and Jeff Flint of Schubert Flint Public Affairs are the best in the business, and successfully guided both California’s Proposition 8 and Question 1 in Maine to success. Anyone who has seen the ads they have produced knows the power of highlighting the consequences of same-sex marriage to voters.

And that’s why I’m writing to you today. NOM has broken the bank in supporting the Stand for Marriage Maine effort. In fact, we only have two months’ operating budget in the bank right now. NOM’s overall contribution to Stand for Marriage Maine of $1.8 million dollars is just a staggering sum to give out of our general treasury account. This year we have grown significantly, but our projected budget of $8 million dollars pales in comparison to our opponents’ deep pockets–last year the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) alone had a whopping budget of more than $41 million dollars.

And yet, as an indication of how far we have leveraged ourselves, HRC, with more than 5 times NOM’s budget, is reported to have given only $145,000 to support gay marriage in Maine.

If I was an HRC donor I would be screaming to high heaven right now!

This is the difference between our operation and theirs. We are not going to build a bloated bureaucracy with your money. We’re going to win with it. It’s that simple. This is what Frank Schubert has to say about our efforts:

“I believe that NOM is the most effective national advocacy group in the nation. They are swift, nimble, completely mission focused and extremely effective. There is no bureaucracy with NOM. Whenever we needed help in Maine, one call to Maggie, Brian or Robby George was all it took to get an answer - which was almost always ‘yes.’ We would have lost in Maine if it weren’t for NOM. It’s as simple as that.”

But we need your help now more than ever. It comes down to this:

Same-sex marriage is likely coming up for a vote in New York and New Jersey in the next month. We do not now have the resources to stop it. We’ve proven we have the team to win, but we don’t have the money.

I’m also asking you to send this message to as many of your friends as possible. Right now. We can’t wait to extend the victory in Maine to other states. The fight is upon us and we promise you that we will use your contribution in the most effective way to win. You can count on that!

I want you to consider what our work is worth to you–what marriage is worth to you–and then to give right now by clicking here.

I’m also asking you to send this message to as many of your friends as possible. Right now. We can’t wait to extend the victory in Maine to other states. The fight is upon us and we promise you that we will use your contribution in the most effective way to win. You can count on that!

Sincerely,

Brian S. Brown
Executive Director
National Organization for Marriage
20 Nassau Street, Suite 242
Princeton, NJ 08542
bbrown@nationformarriage.org

WE DID IT!By a 53-47 margin, voters in Maine won a decisive and historic victory for marriage by passing Question 1!

But each and everyone of you, who volunteered or donated to Stand for Marriage Maine, who forwarded an e-mail to a friend or neighbor, or who simply prayed fervently for the institution of marriage–today is your victory!

The importance of the win in Maine nationally can not be overstated.

Same-sex marriage activists saw Maine as their best chance to win a direct marriage vote. They thought it would stop the momentum we gained by passing Proposition 8 dead in its tracks–and reverse it.

They thought, in their words, it “would break” our movement.

Instead, for the first time in history, the voters of a state have overturned the legislative enactment of same-sex marriage. New York, New Jersey and other states considering redefining marriage will now have to confront this blunt fact:

The voters in a deep New England state have now joined 30 other states in directly affirming marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

If we can win in Maine, we can win anywhere.

From the beginning, NOM saw how high the stakes were in Maine. That’s why we devoted such resources to the effort. We are the single largest donor to Stand for Marriage Maine. We gave nearly $1.8 million, emptying our bank account because of the serious needs in Maine.

Even so, we were outspent 2-1, given little chance to win in the media, and saw our ads pilloried by Maine’s elites.

But we kept fighting, kept hope alive, and continued to focus on our message–same-sex marriage has clear consequences.

And we won.

In my capacity as an executive committee member of Stand for Marriage Maine, I have had the privilege of getting to know and work with campaign chairman Mark Mutty and Rev. Bob Emrich. Both have been tireless defenders of marriage and deserve our nation’s thanks.

Bishop Richard Malone of the Diocese of Portland provided invaluable leadership, inspiring not only the Catholic faithful, but voters across denominational lines.

Frank Schubert and Jeff Flint of Schubert Flint Public Affairs, masterfully guided Question 1 to victory. They are simply the best at what they do, and our movement in Maine and around the country would not have seen these victories without their efforts.

NOM’s president, Maggie Gallagher has been willing to fly at the drop of the hat to Maine (or anywhere else for that matter!) to do whatever necessary to protect marriage.

I write all of this quickly this morning, after a late election night watching returns in Portland, Maine. I’m sitting outside an old stone church in downtown Portland. It is a chilly, breezy, day with the sun shining bright, and the Casco Bay bridge in the distance.

An ideal fall day in New England. An ideal day for marriage in our country.

Faithfully,

Brian S. Brown
Executive Director
National Organization for Marriage
20 Nassau Street, Suite 242
Princeton, NJ 08542
bbrown@nationformarriage.org

Dear Friends of Marriage,

With key votes taking place today in Maine and upstate New York, please do everything you possibly can to help get out the vote.  If you know people who live in these areas, please call them and make sure they get to the polls. Your efforts and phone calls could make the difference in these extremely close races.

Critical Marriage Vote in Maine!
The race to stop same-sex marriage in Maine has come down to the wire. The margin is expected to be razor-thin, and a few hundred votes could tip the outcome one way or the other. Our opposition is extremely well-funded, but the enthusiasm and grassroots momentum we’re seeing from our supporters on the ground is contagious, and victory today will go to whichever side is best able to get its supporters to the polls.

Earlier this year, NOM made Maine one of its top priorities for 2009, becoming the largest single donor to the Stand for Marriage Maine/Yes on 1 campaign. Today, the people of Maine have the opportunity to reject the same-sex marriage legislation enacted by their politicians earlier this year. Please help make sure everyone you know in Maine shows up and votes in this pivotal election. 

Turnout is expected to be low in this off-year election, making each vote all the more significant. If you live in Maine, don’t let anything keep you from voting today! And if you know anyone who lives in Maine, start making phone calls right now.  Polls are open until 8pm tonight. The future of marriage in Maine hangs in the balance.

Historic Opportunity in New York 23rd Congressional District!
Today’s special election in New York’s 23rd Congressional District presents an historic opportunity to shape the future of the Republican Party and set the tone for next year’s mid-term elections. NOM has endorsed Conservative Doug Hoffman in this race, making $113,000 in independent expenditures in support of the Hoffman campaign.

Earlier this year, NOM was one of the first to highlight the significance of this race, urging GOP party bosses not to choose pro-gay marriage, pro-abortion, and ACORN-connected Dede Scozzafava to represent Republicans in this race. Many others joined the effort, and last weekend the Republican candidate, Dede Scozzafava dropped out of the race (endorsing Democrat Bill Owens), leaving NY23 voters with a clear choice in this now two-way race.

This special election marks NOM’s first intervention in any national race, setting the stage for 2010 as we work to identify and support candidates who will stand boldly for marriage in Washington, working to block President Obama’s effort to repeal DOMA. Today is the first step, and we need your help to get out the vote. Polls are open until 9pm tonight.  If you live in upstate New York, or know anyone who does, please make sure that every possible vote is cast in support of Conservative Doug Hoffman.We have the chance to change history today! Victories in Maine and NY-23 would send shockwaves across the nation, and set the tone for the marriage debate throughout the coming year. Both races will be extremely close. Please keep these efforts in your prayers throughout the day. If you live in one of these districts — GO VOTE! And even if you don’t live in Maine or New York, please be sure to call anyone you know in Maine or upstate New York to make sure they vote!

Faithfully,

Brian S. Brown
Executive Director
National Organization for Marriage
20 Nassau Street, Suite 242
Princeton, NJ 08542
bbrown@nationformarriage.org

Paid for by the National Organization for Marriage, Inc. (www.nationformarriage.org).
Not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.

Dear Friends of Marriage,

Bishop Harry Jackson and Stand for Marriage DC.com called a rally for marriage in the nation’s capital this past Sunday.  DC City Council members are threatening to enact a gay marriage bill, even though the majority of DC voters don’t support it, claiming that “civil rights” requires it. 

The idea that the DC human rights code, enacted in 1978, embraces gay marriage is laughable, but it is consistent with the increasingly powerful meme of the gay marriage movement: We win, you lose.

As I stepped up to Freedom Plaza on Sunday,  I watched an incredible sea of faces who refused to be intimidated, who dare to come together to speak out for the core civil right to vote, and to protect marriage in DC.  It was an incredibly moving and inspiring sight!

The Washington Post reporter said that a mere 150 people showed up (and implied that they were mostly bussed in from out of town).  I love writing this letter to you because it give me the chance to give you the inside story, the real stuff.  When I read that WaPo report, I just burst out laughing.  If you go to the website where the Post story is up and look at the photos of the event, notice something important.  The paper doesn’t give you any photos of the crowd, only close-ups of black voters demanding their right to vote.   What they don’t want you to see is the inspiring sight I saw: the thousands of Americans in DC on fire to protect marriage and the right to vote!

150 people?  More than 1000 people signed up for the rally and I counted more than 2000 faces–and yes, they were mostly African-Americans, who turned up to demand their right to vote for marriage.  (Rev. Anthony Evans says it was more like 4,000.)

NOM’s own president Maggie Gallagher devoted her syndicated column to events in D.C. and in New York’s 23rd Congressional District, where defeating Dede Scozzafava has become one of NOM’s top priorities.

Let me quote from her Oct. 27 column, “Gay Marriage Threatens the Establishment of Both Parties”:

The Rev. Anthony Evans stepped up to the podium at Stand for Marriage D.C.’s rally last Sunday with a message for D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray: The black church will no longer partner with politicians of any race who work against its interests and its values.

From the podium, Rev. Evans spoke about an “extraordinary” meeting that took place when a half-dozen black bishops, representing the heart of the black church, paid a pastoral call on Councilman Gray, who is African-American.

The 30 minutes allotted stretched into an hour and a half as bishops representing the core Pentecostal denominations explained their concerns about gay marriage. But Gray was adamant in his support for gay marriage.

Finally one of the clergy asked, “What about your soul?”

“This has nothing to do with my soul,” he snapped.

From the podium, Rev. Evans recalled the “astonishing” moment when these religious leaders realized that Gray’s mind was made up, his heart hardened. He wasn’t really listening to their concerns.

“He’s not concerned about his soul on this issue,” Rev. Evans said on Sunday. “So let me tell Vincent Gray he will have one less thing to worry about: This will be his last term in office.”

The crowd went wild.

More than 3,000 people crowded Freedom Plaza, Evans says, to protest the D.C. Council’s attempt to pass gay marriage over the heads of voters.

“We have reached a point in our history where we will not accept African-American politicians pushing policies that will hurt the black church,” he told me a few days later. “The black church will not take this anymore.”

Major civil rights organizations, long supported by the black church, Rev. Evans says, are now accepting major financial contributions from gay rights interests.

“This will be a major issue in 2010. We will not support Democratic candidates that are working against the interests of the black church,” he promised.

Evans is not some GOP stalking horse. He is the president of the National Black Church Initiative, whose main mission is reducing disparities in health care across America. Trust me, Rev. Evans is not interested in wedge issues that elect Republicans. He cares about forcing the Democratic Party — and black politicians especially — to pay more attention to the voices and values of its most faithful and numerous base, African-American churchgoers.

Marriage is not a partisan issue to me.  The core moral truth–marriage is the union of male and female, of husband and wife, of mother with father–is bigger than the passing politics of today.

Maggie goes on to connect the dots to show what is happening in both political parties:

Rev. Evans thus has a lot in common, whether he knows it or not, with the emerging conservative GOP coalition in New York’s 23rd Congressional District that wants to defeat GOP nominee Dede Scozzafava’s bid to become the first pro-gay-marriage Republican in Congress.

I write this column as a participant, not a neutral observer: The National Organization for Marriage (of which I am president) has joined with prolife groups like Susan B. Anthony and Citizens United for Life, Gary Bauer’s Campaign for Working Families, and the economic conservative powerhouse Club for Growth, to try to defeat the Scozzafava, and elect a third-party candidate, Conservative Doug Hoffman.

Club for Growth’s latest poll shows Hoffman ahead and Dede Scozzafava fading badly under the combined attacks of Hoffman, Sarah Palin and Rush Limbaugh, her own extreme liberal record, not to mention the weird, miserable judgment her campaign showed in calling in police to deal with the reporter from a respectable magazine — The Weekly Standard — who asked too many pointed questions. As Brian Brown, NOM’s executive director, put it: “How can she stand up for the interests of the people of New York’s 23rd in Washington if she can’t even deal with a reporter’s questions without calling in the cops?”

Black churchgoers and white churchgoers belong, by and large with many individual exceptions, to different political parties.

Each party is now being put on notice: Some issues are far bigger than partisan labels. If you ignore the voices and values of your core constituents, they will ignore you.

A political revolution is brewing on both sides of the aisle. How long will it take for the politicians to notice?

We are just a few days away from a great and histroric election.  Tuesday, Nov. 3 is the election.  There are key marriage votes in New Jersey (where both Jon Corzine and Chris Daggett support gay marriage, and only Chris Christie has promised to fight for your voices and your values) and in New York’s 23rd, where the defeat of Dede Scozzafava would be a historic moment for our movement.

In Maine,  we have a historic chance to demonstrate once again that even in a heavily Democratic and secular state like Maine, the people are not for gay marriage.  In Maine the polls are very close.  The gay-marriage movement’s tactics of intimidation and harassment are stepping up. These tactics are deliberately designed to discourage and punish anyone who speaks up for God’s truth about marriage–to misuse the law to treat the millions of good Americans who care about marriage like evil racists and discriminators.

Their tactics in Maine and elsewhere make it increasingly clear that our concerns are not hyperbole.  This is a movement which plays hardball with power, and the power to repress and punish those who disagree with it is dear to their hearts.  Most people, including most gay people, aren’t like that.  But the leaders of this movement are increasingly up-front and emboldened about their right to win no matter who loses, and what they intend to do with the power of the law if we give in to their demands.

Pray and fast–for victory and for the protection of those on the front lines of this great spiritual battle.

And then get to work!   Vote yourself.  Call your friends and relatives in New Jersey, New York and Maine.  Pass this email on to five friends to build our network.  Thanks to you we are fighting hard against lies and hate for marriage and religious liberty!

To serve with you in the cause of Truth and Love is the greatest honor a man can have. We know Who wins in the end, don’t we?

God’s blessing upon you, and remember me and my family in your prayers, too.

Brian S. Brown
Executive Director
National Organization for Marriage
20 Nassau Street, Suite 242
Princeton, NJ 08542
bbrown@nationformarriage.org

NOM Featured Interview
Brian Brown on DC’s marriage fight
CBN News
October 27, 2009
Video link

NOM in the News
“Gay Marriage Threatens Establishment of Both Parties”
Maggie Gallagher
October 27, 2009
The Rev. Anthony Evans stepped up to the podium at Stand for Marriage D.C.’s rally last Sunday with a message for D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray: The black church will no longer partner with politicians of any race who work against its interests and its values.

“Right Battles GOP Choice in a Pivotal Race in New York”
New York Times
October 26, 2009
Ms. Dannenfelser, along with members of the National Organization for Marriage, which opposes efforts to legalize same-sex marriage, are helping to coordinate efforts on the ground in support of Mr. Hoffman.

“Gay marriage fights fuel debate over petitioners’ rights”
Los Angeles Times
October 25, 2009
Karger pointed to a lawsuit filed Thursday by the National Organization for Marriage against Maine’s campaign finance reporting requirements as another attempt to evade scrutiny. The group is the largest donor to efforts to repeal Maine’s gay marriage law.

“Catholic donations to fight gay marriage top $550K”
Associated Press
October 23, 2009
Reports show that the National Organization for Marriage was by far the biggest contributor to Stand for Marriage Maine’s political action committee.

“Historic vote on same-sex unions in Maine”
Washington Times
October 27, 2009
“For the first time, the citizens of a state have a chance to overthrow legislatively enacted same-sex marriage,” said Brian Brown, executive director of the National Organization for Marriage, which opposes same-sex marriage.

“Sensing Its Moment, The Right Descends On NY-23″
New York Daily News
October 23, 2009
The group, which endorsed Hoffman on Sept. 28, is working in concert with the National Organization for Marriage on the social issues aspect of the NY-23 fight. It is also in touch with the Club for Growth, which Dannenfelser said is expected to spend upwards of $800,000 on Hoffman’s behalf.

“Money fueling battle over gay marriage”
Bangor Daily News
October 23, 2009
But $1.1 million of the $1.4 million raised by Stand for Marriage Maine in October came from a single source: the National Organization for Marriage.

“Activists defend same-sex marriage”
Dubuque Telegraph Herald
October 25, 2009
In addition, the National Organization for Marriage has launched Reclaim Iowa, a multi-year campaign to ban same-sex marriage through a state constitutional amendment.

“Conservative Rebellion Explodes in New York over Extreme Liberal GOP Candidate”
Lifesite
October 23, 2009
So far, Hoffman has captured at least 19 total endorsements — including the New York State Right to Life Party, Susan B. Anthony List, National Organization for Marriage, Fred Thompson, and Steve Forbes to name a few.

“Conservative surge”
World Magazine
October 27, 2009
Prominent Republicans Steve Forbes and Fred Thompson, the National Organization for Marriage, and the Concerned Women for America PAC have all backed [Hoffman].

“NY23 Hits Its Tipping Point”
CQPolitics.com
MSNBC
October 28, 2009
For more than two months, Hoffman’s momentum has been building, as conservatives of all shapes and sizes and pedigrees — Old Right barons (Mike Long, chairman of New York’s Conservative Party; David Keene, chairman of the American Conservative Union; Ron Pearson, of the Conservative Victory Fund; Citizens for the Republic), new media conservatives (Erick Erickson of RedState; Michelle Malkin; Patrick Ruffini), social conservatives (Concerned Women for America; the Susan B. Anthony List; Eagle Forum; National Organization for Marriage) and fiscal conservatives (Club for Growth; Steve Forbes; Dick Armey), and political leaders like Rick Santorum, Fred Thompson, Sarah Palin, and Tim Pawlenty — have come together behind his candidacy.

“Setback for Group Fighting Gay Marriage in Maine”
New York Times
October 29, 2009
The Maine attorney general is prodding a national group that fights same-sex marriage to reveal its donors by Election Day, after a federal judge on Wednesday denied the group’s request for a restraining order.

“Focus of Gay-Marriage Fight is Maine”
New York Times
October 28, 2009
The Maine Ethics Commission is investigating whether the National Organization for Marriage has violated the state’s campaign finance laws by keeping its donors anonymous. The group has responded with a lawsuit challenging Maine’s financial reporting requirements.

“Same-sex marriage foes vow court fight”
Washington Post
October 27, 2009
“This is the whole ballgame right here,” said Brian Brown, executive director of the National Organization for Marriage, which has been at the center of the battle over same-sex marriage in California and other states. “We will go to the higher courts. . . . The other side better be careful what they wish for.”

“PAC LAW HIT”
Kennebec Journal
October 24, 2009
The National Organization for Marriage, a major donor to the Yes on 1 campaign to overturn the state’s gay marriage law, is suing the state, alleging its campaign finance laws are unconstitutional.

“Maine gay marriage debate heats up, differs from Vermont”
Barre Montpelier Times Argus
October 24, 2009
And the National Organization for Marriage is challenging the state’s campaign finance laws, which requires them to reveal who their donors are

“Ruling due on privacy of anti-gay-marriage donors”
Kennebec Journal
October 27, 2009
The National Organization for Marriage and American Principles in Action have challenged the state campaign finance laws that apply to ballot question committees, arguing that requiring them to disclose their contributors violates the free speech protections in the First Amendment to the Constitution.

“Group Funding Gay Marriage Repeal Campaign Loses Court Fight”
MPBN News
October 28, 2009
A federal judge has denied a temporary restraining order sought by the New Jersey-based organization that’s provided more than half the funding for the campaign to repeal Maine’s same-sex marriage law. The National Organization for Marriage, or NOM, sought the restraining order against the Maine Ethics Commission, which has launched an investigation into the source of the group’s finances.

“Yes on One Contributors Dealt Setback in Effort to Keep Donors Names Private”
MPBN News
October 28, 2009
The groups American Principles in Action and the National Organization for Marriage argued that Maine’s election law is overly burdensome in its donor disclosure and record-keeping requirements and unconstitutional because of the chill it can put on free speech — in other words on prospective donors who might prefer to remain anonymous.

“Court Action Pending in Question 1″
WTMW.com
October 26, 2009
Video link

“Top Story” (more on donor disclosure)
WGME
October 27, 2009
Video link

Dear Friends of Marriage,

Let me start by saying, “Thank you.”  I don’t say this often enough–but from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

A great big thank-you especially to the thousands of you in New Jersey who have responded to NOM’s Call to Marriage.  Gay-marriage advocates keep saying nobody really cares about this issue but them.  But in New Jersey, a blue state, we are generating a tidal wave of calls–more than 1000 per senate district, from people who, like you, are fed up with politicians who ignore our voices and our values!

Thank you!

NOM’s hard-hitting radio ads, “Gay Marriage Has Consequences,” are also having an effect  (You can help us sponsor an ad–listen to it here!–by donating to NOM.)  If these out-of-touch pols try to sneak gay marriage through a lame-duck legislature to avoid the people’s wrath, they now know they have a fight on their hands!  Thanks again to you and all that you have made possible for us here at the National Organization for Marriage.

New York’s unelected governor, David Paterson, may try to push a gay marriage bill through a special session–maybe as soon as next week, according to the Daily News:
“Paterson aides said he’ll also ask lawmakers to act on a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in a special session next Wednesday.  …A source said gay marriage will be on the agenda to force the Senate to deal with it one way or the other.”  If you live in New York, now is the time to step up and make sure the politicians hear you loud and clear.  Go here to send your message–and find five friends to join you today!

Gay activists are clearly flexing their political muscles as donors and as activists and insisting they cannot wait a day longer for a vote on gay marriage.  The Daily News is also reporting about this week’s Empire State Pride Agenda Fall Dinner:

Van Capelle also issued a warning to the elected officials in the room, particularly those who “make a statement and then fail to fight in the trenches where it counts.” (Invoking Dante, he suggested the hottest circle of hell might be reserved for those who “take a stand, but do so tepidly”).

“We have campaigned for you. We have raised money for you we have supported you in every way imaginable, and we should have no patience for these sorry summer soldiers,” Van Capelle said.

“Now is not the time for half hearted you must risk yourselves as we risk ourselves every day. We must fight and work for equality as we fight and work for equality every day and if you do not, we can find other friends who will do that job for us and do it better than you.”

“ESPA spent upwards of $1 million in 2008 to flip the Senate into Democratic hands (and that doesn’t count the additional money poured into the Democrats’ coffers by the Gill Action Fund and other pro-marriage interests,” the Daily News reports.

I bet one of the reasons these gay-marriage advocates are demanding an immediate vote is that they do not want GOP state legislators to focus on the results from New York’s 23rd Congressional district, where Dede Scozzafava’s poll numbers are tanking as more New York voters discover just how pro-gay-marriage she is.  Not only is Dede theoretically in favor of gay marriage, she’s one of the few GOP politicians ever to vote for it!  Up in Oneida and surrounding areas, Dede’s position on gay marriage is not playing very well.

NOM has committed $150,000 (at least!) to helping make sure voters in New York 23 know just how pro-gay-marriage Dede is. Can you help us keep up the pressure by donating to NOM today?

And of course it didn’t help that Dede’s campaign recently responded to tough questioning by the Weekly Standard’s political reporter–by calling the cops!  Can you imagine?

Dede, cops are busy people with a big job to do: fighting real crime.  Don’t waste their time by forcing them to respond to calls about aggressive questioning from respectable news magazines.   And don’t expect voters to believe you can stand up for their interests in Washington if you can’t even stand up to a few tough questions.

The last published poll showed Dede in second place, with Doug Hoffman’s numbers rising rapidly.  The Washington Post reported, “What all sides seem to agree on is that Scozzafava is fading — whether slightly or badly depends on which candidate you support.”

Stay tuned.  It has the smell of a great victory!

The hatred by pro-gay-marriage leaders against people who disagree with them is intensifying.  The Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education’ Network honored a man named David Bohnett, who took the opportunity to declare war on religious groups that oppose gay marriage.

“We must treat the causes of intolerance and bullying as well as the symptoms of them,” he remarked. “And as we see most often, it is the evangelical and fundamentalist groups that teach homosexuality is a sin, who stand in the way of fairness and equality.

“It’s time to combat head-on the religious organizations that are funding the opposition to marriage equality and safe school legislation.

“Let us make it known, however, that we will challenge those religious leaders and institutions that shamefully and cowardly use the imprimatur of their church and the name of god [sic] and Jesus to promote hatred and bigotry toward lesbians and gay men,” Bohnett declared.

Now you know where the hatred and intolerance displayed against good people who spoke, donated, and voted to protect marriage came from. With leaders like this who openly and proudly declare open war on whole faith communities for their disagreement on marriage, is it any wonder so many followers have reacted with threats, intimidation, and harassment–petty and otherwise?

But more good news this week:  Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy just stepped in to block the release of petition-signers’ names in Washington state.

The Wall Street Journal just published a story by John Fund showing why protecting petition-signers is necessary.  It’s called “Come Let us Harass Them: Gay Marriage Proponents Want to Intimidate their Critics”:

The prospect of harassment is real. Last year, activists hounded those who had financially supported California’s Proposition 8. Scott Eckern, artistic director of the California Musical Theater in Sacramento, the state’s largest nonprofit performing arts company, was forced to resign over his $1,000 donation to the “Yes on 8″ campaign. Los Angeles Film Festival Director Richard Raddon was similarly forced to step down. Marjorie Christoffersen, manager of the famous Los Angeles restaurant El Coyote, resigned after her restaurant was subjected to a month of boycotts and demonstrations because she had contributed a mere $100 to the campaign against gay marriage.

It’s not hard to see the hand of God at work in this case.  Justice Kennedy is the “swing vote” on the Court on the gay-marriage issue.  His willingness to step in will make sure he is aware of and understands the increasing hatred and intolerance directed towards Americans who disagree with gay marriage.  And that cannot but be good news for the ultimate triumph of Prop 8 in the federal courts.

And you can be sure we will fight to protect not only marriage but all your rights! The National Organization for Marriage is involved in two lawsuits, one out of California and one in Maine, which will help us protect the exercise of core civil rights to speak, to donate, and to vote on behalf of marriage. (See the story in the Bangor Daily News, below, for the lawsuit we just filed.)  We will not be intimidated out of standing up for the truth about marriage.  With God’s help we will vindicate your rights and the rights of millions of other Americans who care about protecting marriage.

God bless you for all you do not only for marriage, but for the cause of truth, for decency and for democracy itself.

Brian S. Brown
Executive Director
National Organization for Marriage
20 Nassau Street, Suite 242
Princeton, NJ 08542
bbrown@nationformarriage.org

NOM Featured Article
“Gay Marriage 101″
Seyward Darby
The New Republic
October 21, 2009

“It’s simple: Any area that the state defines as a civil right, if it’s brought up in schools, why would you not talk about it?” Brown asked. But isn’t there a difference between teaching students what state laws say are legal and presenting those legal activities as things students should or shouldn’t pursue in life? (After all, vegetarianism is legal, so teachers might accurately say, “Vegetarianism means not eating meat, and there are vegetarians in Maine”–but that doesn’t mean they’ll necessarily tell students they should be vegetarians or agree with their views on beef.) “I don’t think that parents want their kids as young as kindergarten being taught about same-sex marriage, period, whether the teacher thinks it’s appropriate or not,” Brown said.

NOM in the News
“One Question for Ted Olson”
Maggie Gallagher
October 18, 2009
The Corner–National Review Online
I have only one question for Ted: How exactly did you come to believe you have the right to use the Constitution (i.e. the power of government) to impose your values? I have seen the arguments he and David Boies are using in the case to strike down Prop 8 and impose gay marriage on all 50 states. They are standard liberal fare - speaking constitutionally, not politically.

“Tokenism Is Back in Style at the National GOP”
Marilyn Musgrave
Washington Examiner
October 22, 2009
A battle for the heart and soul of the Republican Party is underway in upstate New York. At stake is whether a candidate’s gender and vote for House Speaker ultimately hold more sway than the values reflected in her record.

“RI Governor to Meet with Activists After Anti-Gay Marriage Speech”
On Top Magazine
October 18, 2009
Carcieri, who will be term-limited out of office next year, remains a major obstacle to passing a gay marriage bill in Rhode Island, which lawmakers have considered for the last 12 years. The governor also backs an effort to place a gay marriage ban in the Rhode Island Constitution. And in the spring, he and his wife, Sue, joined the state’s newly minted chapter of the National Organization for Marriage, the nation’s most vociferous opponent of gay marriage.

“Coalition Calls for NJ State Commission of Ethics to Investigate Abuse of Power, Funding and Conflicts of Interest by the NJ Civil Union Review Board”
New Jersey Family Council
October 19, 2009
What: A coalition of organizations are calling for the NJ State Commission of Ethics to investigate and review the principles, practices and performance of the New Jersey Civil Union Review Commission (CURC). Questions remain open about abuses of power, how the committee secured funding, obvious conflicts of interest by the leadership and potential subterfuge in the reporting of the CURC in its operation and report generation. These issues will be discussed at the press conference.

“Anti-Gay Marriage Group Sues State”
Bangor Daily News
October 23, 2009
A Washington, D.C.-based organization under investigation for its financial role in the campaign to repeal Maine’s gay marriage law has fired back with a lawsuit questioning the constitutionality of a state election law.
 

Dear Friends of Marriage,

Everyone keeps asking me about Maine.

Here’s the great news: StandforMarriageMaine.com (the Yes on One folks) have a new campaign ad so effective that National Public Radio doesn’t want you to see it!

It’s an ad featuring an NPR news interview from 2004 with a pro-gay marriage Massachusetts public school teacher. In the interview, the teacher describes in great (and warning: occasionally graphic) detail how her teaching changed once gay marriage became the law. “Give me a break” she says, “it’s legal now.”

The marketing department has issued a “cease and desist” order claiming copyright infringement. They are trying to get the ad off YouTube and off the air. Wow. Raw censorship–and by a news organization.

Must be a really great ad, I say!

Why is NPR trying to censor this ad?

Because it’s an inconvenient truth. Truth, not truthiness. When gay marriage becomes the law of the land, of course public schools will teach about it. They will teach it as civil rights triumph, as the incarnation of our commitment to equality and diversity. And Maine parents will have no right to protect their children from this government instruction.

And here’s more good news: as Mainers come to realize that gay marriage has real consequences, they are moving strongly in the direction of protecting marriage.

You can understand why NPR feels that has to be stopped somehow!

Dana Davis Rehm, executive vice president of marketing, communications and external relations for NPR, tried to justify this unwarranted intrusion of an alleged news organization into a political campaign to shut down information. “The use of the (’All Things Considered’) story was a very central piece of the ad,” Rehm said Tuesday to the Portland Press-Herald. “It wasn’t a small quote, or a quote among a series of quotes, as often would appear in a fair-use situation.”

You have to use a series of quotes or it’s not fair use? Really Dana? Is this the best NPR can do?

It is an extraordinary moment when a news organization openly acts to interfere with a political campaign.

But truth cannot be stopped by such paltry and obvious lies and evasions. The people of Maine are learning the truth about gay marriage-gay marriage has consequences.

So a new published poll shows the race a dead heat 48 to 48 percent.

As the Baptist Press put it, “The survey is good news for Question 1 supporters, who were outraised 2-to-1 through September and trailed by 9 points in a poll conducted Sept. 30-Oct. 7. Both surveys used identical polling language — the same language that will be found on the Nov. 3 ballot.”

But for those of us who are veterans in the marriage wars, the news is even better than the Baptist Press thinks. Consider the California experience. The last published poll before the election, conducted by The Field Poll, showed Prop 8 going down to defeat with just 44 percent in favor to 47 percent opposed. And yet when Californians voted, marriage won! A majority of Californians (52% to 48%) voted to protect the traditional understanding of marriage and oppose gay marriage.

In other words, in Maine, we are at least four points ahead of where we were at this time in the California battle. Take heart, take renewed courage for the battle from this news: this fight can be won with your help — and God’s.

Pastor Jim Garlow, who led the California Pastors Rapid Response team in the Prop 8 battle, has organized a nationwide campaign of prayer and fasting for victory for marriage in Maine. Not just prayer mind you — prayer and fasting. Some Catholics in Maine are hosting 9 days of Novena for victory. Pray for victory. Pray and fast.

And get to work!

It’s a close race. Every vote counts. If you know someone in Maine call them up, email them, ask them to volunteer (www.standformarriagemaine.com). The gay marriage lobby in Maine has more than 30 paid staffers, a lot of them imported form California to try to turn their people out. We have you!

If you are in Maine go volunteer — and get five of your friends too

The other thing Maine needs is your financial support, if you can afford it in these tough times. Don’t give money to NOM today — Give it to Maine. Give $100 today to Maine. Give $1 today to Maine. Give for marriage, give for victory, we can win this fight! Tomorrow I will let you in on other exciting NOM news from New York, New Jersey and other great battles. Today I am asking you to let those NPR marketing folks know what you think about their pathetic attempt to censors of the truth! Make a donation to StandFormarriageMaine.com right now!

I thank God once again for the privilege of standing with you in this great battle of our times.

Truth and love will prevail over lies and hate–when good people like you stand up with grace, love and courage under fire and fight back–and then together our voices and our values will be heard!

Dear Friends of Marriage,

Join us this Sunday, October 25th, as we gather to protect marriage in the nation’s capital! With the DC City Council threatening to impose same-sex marriage throughout the District, DC residents are gathering together to demand that their voice be heard and their right to vote not be taken away.

What: Stand4Marriage Rally!

When: Sunday, October 25th
             3:00 - 5:00 pm.

Where: Freedom Plaza (14th & Pennsylvania NW)

Who: Pastors, community leaders, concerned citizens, and YOU! Please bring a friend!

RSVP: Please email stand4marriagedc@gmail.com to let them know you’ll be there!

The Stand4MarriageDC team, led by Bishop Harry Jackson, has filed an initiative petition to preempt the DC City Council’s plans to push through a same-sex marriage bill co-sponsored by 10 of the Council’s 13 members. If successful, the initiative would put same-sex marriage before DC voters. The Board of Elections, however, is threatening to reject the marriage initiative, claiming it violates the DC Human Rights Act, and is thus ineligible to be voted on as an initiative measure.

Join us in telling the DC Council that they’ve ignored the people of the District long enough. When it comes to marriage, it’s time to let the people have the final say.

It looks like the weather will be perfect . . . so tell your friends, announce it at church, and then come on down to take a Stand For Marriage in our nation’s capital! Hope to see you there!

Faithfully,

Brian S. Brown
Executive Director
National Organization for Marriage
20 Nassau Street, Suite 242
Princeton, NJ 08542
bbrown@nationformarriage.org

Dear Friends of Marriage,

Something fascinating just happened in Iowa: The president of the Iowa-Nebraska NAACP just refused to endorse Iowa’s Democratic Gov. Chet Culver, instead throwing his support to one of the six GOP candidates for governor.

Why? Keith Ratliff, who is a black Democrat, said same-sex marriage was an “important factor”: “There’s no doubt about it, it’s an important factor,” he told the press.

Keith Ratliff is also the pastor of the Maple Street Missionary Baptist Church in Des Moines, and has been an outspoken critic of the Iowa Supreme Court’s decision in April imposing gay marriage–and now of the Governor’s and other leading Democrats’ refusal to put a marriage amendment on the ballot. Why are Democratic leaders in Iowa so determined to keep the right to define marriage out of the hands of the people of Iowa? It will be a long-hard fight, but we believe in the end Iowa can and will join the 30 other states that have constitutionally protected the people’s right to define marriage as one man and one woman.

In New York state, African-American state senators like State Sen. Ruben Diaz (like Ratliff, an ordained minister) have emerged as crucial roadblocks on the path to imposing same-sex marriage. In New Jersey, NOM has launched a new quarter-million radio ad designed to let parents know what gay marriage in New Jersey will mean for them and their children and grandchildren. Listen here. We need your help, today, to keep these ads on the air!

Thank the Lord for these great men and women, for their profiles in courage on marriage.  We need more men and women of principle like New York State Senator Shirley Huntley from Queens, who told the New York Times,  “If they gave me a million dollars, tax free, I just wouldn’t vote for it.”

On the other hand, there are people like Sarah Schulman, an English professor at New York’s City University,  with a very different view. She has written a new book, Ties that Bind, that pushes a new next step in the gay-marriage agenda: “Homophobia should be identified as a sickness, with families court-ordered into treatment programs.” How did I hear about such a wacky idea? In an Oct. 14 column published by the perfectly respectable publication Inside Higher Ed. The author, Scott McLemee (whose summary of Sarah’s thought I am quoting), believes in the “new civil rights movement.” He doesn’t go so far as Sarah and say that government should be used to force dissenters into therapy, though. His solution to persistent disagreement with gay marriage? ”Traumatize ‘em right back!”

Wow. Are these now the choices in so-called respectable so-called civil rights circles? Either forced therapeutic re-education by government or else cultural traumatization and marginalization of people who disagree? Nice movement you have there, guys.

I know that many, many gay-marriage advocates don’t think this way. But this is a top-down movement driven by leaders who have seldom been very honest with the American people about what their ultimate aims are: to use the law to reshape the culture so that decent, loving, honorable, peaceful people who believe that marriage means a husband and wife get traumatized as bigots.

Fight back! When you speak out for marriage, when you vote for marriage, and when you donate to NOM, you’re sending a message: We will not be intimidated.

Elder Dallin Oakes, one of the Quorum of the Twelve of the LDS Church, released to the press a copy of what the LDS church described as a major address on religious freedom, a speech Elder Oakes is making at Brigham Young-Idaho campus.

The AP, in covering the speech, for the first time to my knowledge acknowledged the widespread campaign of harassment and intimidation that took place against Prop 8 activists and donors–at least the disgraceful un-American focus on punishing a religious minority for peacefully exercising their core civil rights to vote, organize, and donate to protect marriage. That’s worth noting.

“After the measure prevailed, its opponents focused much of their ire on Mormons, organizing boycotts of businesses with LDS ties and protests at Mormon worship places. While some demonstrations were peaceful, in others church windows were shattered and slurs were hurled at the church’s founding fathers,”  the AP reporter wrote. The economic attacks that led people to lose their jobs and their businesses, the fearmongering that included hate mail directed to people’s homes, and even a handful of reports of physical attacks? Those have not yet been noticed by the AP.

These attacks were not anti-religious as such, Elder Oaks says, and he is right.  Anti-Mormon bigotry was only part of a larger attack on all Americans who dared to speak up for marriage.

“Those who seek to change the foundation of marriage should not be allowed to pretend that those who defend the ancient order are trampling on civil rights,” Oaks said. “The supporters of Proposition 8 were exercising their constitutional right to defend the institution of marriage ….”

“There are civil rights involved in this–the right to speak your mind, to participate in the election,” Oaks later told the AP. “But you don’t have a civil right to win an election or retaliate against those who prevail.”

Amen to that! At NOM we know we are the true rainbow coalition–people of every race, creed and color coming together in love to stand up for truth.

Thanks to all of you who have shown such grace under fire, such a firm commitment to stand up speak God’s truth in love to all of our fellow citizens. Government did not make marriage, God did. And He knew what he was doing.

Please pray for America’s leaders, and for all our fellow Americans of every faith community who must now stand up not just for marriage, but for the core civil rights that make democracy itself.

God bless you,

Brian S. Brown
Executive Director
National Organization for Marriage
20 Nassau Street, Suite 242
Princeton, NJ 08542
bbrown@nationformarriage.org

PS: Whether you can give $15 or $150–or even, if God has given you the means, more–know that every dollar makes a difference in the ongoing fight to protect marriage in this country. Thank you so much for all you do!

NOM Featured Interview
Brian Brown on CBN
October 12, 2009

“NAACP President Backs Vander Plaats, Calls Marriage Issue ‘Important Factor’”
Des Moines Register
October 12, 2009
Keith Ratliff, president of the Iowa-Nebraska chapter of the NAACP, endorsed Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Vander Plaats today, citing the Sioux City businessman’s position on the same-sex marriage debate as “an important factor.”

“New Civil Rights Movement”
Scott McLemee
Inside Higher Ed
October 14, 2009
A less sanguine view comes across in Sarah Schulman’s Ties That Bind: Familial Homophobia and Its Consequences, a recent title from the New Press. The author is a novelist and playwright who is professor of English at the City University of New York, College of Staten Island. It is a short and angry book. Unlike many another volume of social criticism by an academic, it does not mediate or diffuse that anger through carefully rehearsed stagings of the author’s theoretical affiliations. She just gets right down to it.

NOM in the News
“Maine Gay Marriage Campaigns Report Donations”
Associated Press
October 14, 2009
Supporters of Maine’s gay marriage law said Tuesday they’ve collected $2.7 million for their campaign against a ballot proposal to repeal it, more than double the amount the measure’s supporters said they raised.

“Marriage Debate at Constitution Center”
Philadelphia Gay News
October 15, 2009
The National Constitution Center will host “A Right to Marry? Same-sex Marriage and the Constitution,” a panel discussion on the issue with leading advocates and opponents of marriage equality, at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 20 at the center, 522 Arch St.

Joining the discussion will be marriage-equality supporters attorney David Boies, who is currently spearheading a legal effort to overturn California’s ban on same-sex marriage; openly gay author Keith Boykin; and marriage-equality opponents Maggie Gallagher, president of the National Organization for Marriage; and Glenn T. Stanton, director for Family Formation Studies at Focus on the Family.

“Question 1: Nation Watches as Maine Voters Contemplate Who Can Marry”
Bangor Daily News
October 10, 2009
On Nov. 3, Maine will either make history as the first state where voters grant same-sex couples the right to marry or join the ranks of the dozens of other states where “traditional marriage” has prevailed at the polls.

“Maine in Spotlight”
Morning Sentinel
October 11, 2009
Maine is at the center of a divisive national debate that touches on religion, family, children and sexuality, political scientists say.

And it’s all about gay marriage.

“Maine Anti-Gay Measure Facing Defeat”
Washington Independent
October 14, 2009
Buried in this poll on Maine political attitudes is a question on the Nov. 3 same-sex marriage referendum that does not auger well for gay marriage opponents. Question 1, which would roll back legal gay marriage in the state, is trailing 52-43. Catholic voters support the measure, but only by a seven-point margin. Last month, Maggie Gallagher of the National Organization for Marriage told me that she was confident that the question would pass.

“Trailing 2-to-1 in Donations, Opponents of ‘Gay Marriage’ in Maine Issue Plea”
Baptist Press
October 14, 2009
With three weeks left before Election Day, an expected tight race in Maine could turn into a landmark victory for “gay marriage” backers Nov. 3 thanks to a more than 2-to-1 fundraising advantage revealed Tuesday.

Friends,

Let me be direct: Unless we act now, marriage will be redefined in Maine. Never before have voters had the chance to directly overturn the legislative enactment of same-sex marriage in any state in the country. If we lose marriage in Maine, we risk losing marriage everywhere.

I’m not asking you today for contributions for the National Organization for Marriage. NOM is dedicated to winning the marriage fight. Period. We don’t have a bloated staff or overhead. We were the largest contributor both to the Proposition 8 effort in California and to Stand for Marriage Maine. We put our money where our mouth is. But we have stretched ourselves as far as we can go.

It is now up to you to make the difference. We want your money to go where it is most useful in the fight. And right now, Yes on 1/Stand for Marriage Maine needs your support in a way that no state marriage group has needed it before.

I’m asking you to read the powerful e-mail below from my friend, Marc Mutty, chairman of Stand for Marriage Maine, and to think long and hard about what marriage is worth to you, your family, and your country—and then to give whatever you can today to Stand for Marriage Maine to protect this precious institution.

I’m also asking you to forward this e-mail to everyone you know that supports protecting marriage across the country. Send it to your friends on Facebook, post it on your blog, send it to your e-mail contacts. Do anything you can to get the message out: If we don’t act now we risk losing the most important state battle for marriage since California. It’s that simple. And it’s up to you.

Yours for marriage,

**************************
October 13, 2009

FROM: Marc Mutty, Chair, Stand for Marriage Maine

RE: URGENT DEVELOPMENT: Marriage Under Financial Assault

We knew we were being vastly outspent from the fact that the No on 1 campaign was able to air their advertising upwards of 50% more than our Yes on 1 campaign ads. We had a clue that the other side was awash in money because of the dozens of paid staff members they have on board their campaign. But we never dreamed the situation was as dire as it is: our opponents have raised approximately $1.6 more than we have and are conducting a financial assault on the institution of marriage. Overall, they have raised an astonishing $2.7 million from gay marriage supporters across the country!

We are in desperate need of additional financial support or we risk losing because our opponents are attempting to buy themselves an election - and destroy the institution of marriage in the process.

The latest financial reports detailing the amount of money that has come in for both sides of the Question 1 campaign shows that our committee, Stand for Marriage Maine has raised approximately $1.1 million while our opponents have raised about 2.5 times more than we have. This is an astonishing financial advantage our opponents have amassed. It explains why they were able to be on the air with ads nearly three weeks before our campaign was able to begin advertising. It explains why they can afford to operate multiple campaign headquarters. It explains how they can afford a statewide staff of field organizers and operate dozens of phone banks. And it explains why the institution of marriage is teetering on the ledge - at risk of being forever redefined in Maine. Our opponents are raising money from across the country from gay marriage supporters who see an opportunity to win their first victory at the ballot box in the history of the nation.

We cannot let them get away with this. We cannot let homosexual marriage activists from virtually every state in the nation decide that marriage will be redefined in Maine. Please don’t let our opponents succeed with this financial assault on marriage. Will you please, right now, make a generous donation to our campaign?

The good news is that even though we are being vastly outspent, we have run a financially prudent and efficient campaign. Our polling shows that we are dead-even right now and in a good position to win the campaign. Voters recall our advertising more so than the ads from the other side. We are defining Question 1 on our terms. And we know that we will win when voters come to understand the many consequences to families, children and society as a whole if same-sex marriage is legalized in Maine.

The only way our opponents can win is if they try to confuse the issue by running millions of dollars in advertising with false claims that we are lying about the consequences of legalizing homosexual marriage. They don’t want to defend the teaching of homosexual marriage to young children in public schools, so they are spending millions to try to deny and deny. They don’t want to talk about individuals, small businesses and religious groups being sued for refusing to support homosexual marriage, so they are spending millions to calls us liars. And they don’t want to explain to voters why the law they sponsored and advocated strips from Maine’s marriage statutes the interests of nurturing children, so they are spending millions making the oxymoronic claim that we are trying to “harm children.” We are trying to prevent 5, 6 and 7 year old children from being taught about homosexual marriage in school against the wishes of their parents and we are accused of “harming children?” If it weren’t so serious, this would be like describing an ‘Alice in Wonderland’ situation.

But it IS so serious. Our campaign strategists, who helped pass Proposition 8 in California and who have won dozens of initiative campaigns around the country, tell us that we cannot win if we continue to be outspent as we have to this point. It is amazing that we are still in a dead heat. We’ve had to cut our voter contact program dramatically. Every week we’ve cut our advertising budget. We’ve eliminated a statewide bus tour that we had planned for next week. We’ve had to cut back on staffing. And collateral materials. And direct mail. Our grassroots organizing has suffered.

Yet still we are in a position to pass Question 1. This is a testament to your strong support and to the common sense of average Mainers who know in their heart that marriage is worth preserving.

But let’s not fool ourselves. We have to raise more money, right now, if we are to pass Question 1. Please make a sacrificial contribution today, as if the survival of marriage depended on it.
Because, quite literally, it does.

The campaign reports made available today lay bare the falsehood of our opponents’ claim that they have a homegrown, grassroots Maine-based campaign. The truth is their support has come mostly from the gay activist political elite from all corners of the nation, including Hollywood, Colorado, New York, Massachusetts, and the Democratic national political machine, Act Blue.com. They have raised money from virtually every state in the nation.

Why are homosexual marriage activists pouring money into Maine? Because never before have they been able to convince voters to approve homosexual marriage. Voters in thirty states have considered this issue, and in all thirty states they have voted to preserve traditional marriage and reject homosexual marriage. But our opponents think they can win in Maine. We are a small state. Raising millions of dollars to spend here will make a big difference. Recruiting hundreds of volunteers to come to Maine will make a big difference. And if they can win in Maine it would be historic. They will use a victory to attempt to convince the media that the mood of the nation has changed and that it is time for America to also abandon the God-created idea of marriage.

Will you let them get away with it?

So much is riding on the Question 1 election. We have three weeks left. We have three weeks to close the financial deficit we are in. We have three weeks to add to our advertising campaign. We have three weeks to buttress our grassroots operation. We have three weeks to talk to Maine voters about the importance of traditional marriage, and the consequences of abandoning it in favor of homosexual marriage.

But all this must start right now - today - and it must start with you and me. We’ve learned an important lesson. Our opponents are determined to do whatever they can to secure victory. We must respond, and respond now. It is up to you. There is no one but you. The only question is, will you be there for us when the fight for marriage needs you the most? We pray you will be.

Thank you for all your efforts to defend God’s precious institution of marriage. We look forward to your continued help. We are counting on you at this critical time.

Sincerely,

Marc Mutty
Campaign Chairman