New Entrants To The "No On 8" Team: Dianne Feinstein, Mary Cheney (!)

Yesterday, the Bay Area Reporter ran a story that raised some eyebrows about Dianne Feinstein's reticence on Proposition 8, the Hate Amendment. It must have certainly raised eyebrows inside Feinstein's headquarters, because today she released this statement:

"Proposition 8 would eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry in California. I oppose it as a matter of equality and fairness.

The right to marry is fundamental. It provides social stability, economic equality, and the ability to make decisions for a spouse in a time of crisis.

If Proposition 8 were to pass, not only would it eliminate the right to marry for gay and lesbian couples, but it would also create a complicated legal quagmire for those who have exercised this right under the California Constitution, as adjudicated by the Supreme Court of the State.

The views of Californians on this issue have changed over time, and as a State, I believe we should uphold the ability of our friends, neighbors, and co-workers who are gay and lesbian to enter into the contract of
marriage.

I urge Californians to oppose Proposition 8."

It shouldn't have taken this long, and it shouldn't have taken a newspaper story to set it in motion, but I'm glad she released this. Now we'll she if she'll do anything more.

Of far more interest to me is this (h/t Think Progress):

Though she long sat on the sidelines as her father served as second in command over the past eight years, Vice-President Dick Cheney’s daughter Mary is flexing her political muscle and joining the fight to stop Prop. 8.

According to the website RepublicansAgainst8.com, Cheney pledged $3,000 back in July to the campaign to stop the ballot measure attempting to re-ban gay marriage in California.

It's quite a coalition that can include all of these disparate elements of the political spectrum. Meanwhile, Ron Prentice of the "California Family Council," running the Yes on 8 side of things, is funneling donations into his own pocket:

Since 2003, the public has given the Riverside, Calif.-based California Family Council (CFC) nearly $3 million to support charitable work that the organizations says "protects and fosters judeo-Christian principles in California's laws." But, according to its federal tax returns, little more than $500,000 of that money has gone to "program services," or expenses directly related to that charitable work.

In contrast, the CFC's top two employees, including its founder and executive director, Ron Prentice, were paid a total of $1.1 million over four years. The CFC's other employees earned a total of $900,000 in compensation -- bringing the total spent on employees at the Council to about $2 million since it began in 2003.

(More on that sordidness here)

This is just a wingnut welfare scheme to the pro side. On the other side are those who believe in equality and fairness.