DP Benefits to Federal Employees

Quick note. First of all, there's a lot of yelling about Obama these days -- and I won't say I'm not part of the problem, sometimes, as I've said some negative stuff in the past few weeks, but I don't think I'm as angry about it as much as other people. Partly because he's still on our side, and I still believe in him... in a way.

And he can do some things, and it seems he might be starting to. From the NYTimes, via a new Blogger friend and soon to be blogrolled at Columbus Gay Realtor:

President Obama will sign a presidential memorandum Wednesday to extend benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees, administration officials said Tuesday evening, but he will stop short of pledging full health insurance benefits.

Mr. Obama is expected to announce, in the Oval Office, the details about which benefits would be provided. It is the highest-profile statement he has made on gay issues, and it comes as he faces intense criticism from several gay-rights leaders over what they suggest has been a failure to live up to campaign promises in the first months of his presidency.

Mr. Obama will be weighing in for the first time on one of the most sensitive social and political issues of the day: whether the government must provide benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees. While he will announce a list of benefits, officials said, they are not expected to include broad health insurance coverage, which could require legislation to achieve.

“Extending benefits to partners of gay federal employees is terrific, but at this point he is under enormous pressure from the gay civil rights community for having promised the moon and done nothing so far,” Richard Socarides, an adviser to the Clinton administration on gay issues, said Tuesday evening. “So more important now is what he says tomorrow about the future for gay people during his presidency.”

So, even though it's not exactly what we're looking for, it is a huge step in our favor. Maybe it will be enough to calm everything down. With all the hullabaloo that's exploded over the blogosphere the last few weeks over the perceived injustices, I am reminded of a scene in Primary Colors when the new primary challenger, Fred Picker, entered the race and everyone is pumped and screaming and shouting and he steps up and says: "You know, maybe we should all just calm down. Maybe we just all need to sit down, take a breath, and stop yelling so much."

I mean, that's not an exact quote, but it's pretty close. Anyways, it's all got me thinking. Maybe this wouldn't happen if we hadn't been yelling... or maybe it would have. Or, maybe there is a plan?