NOMblog: The Official Blog of the National Organization for Marriage

NOM BLOG

Category Archives: Marriage

NCRegister: Hollywood's 'Gay Culture' Reshaping America

May 20, 2013 – 12:00 pm

The entertainment industry centered on Hollywood has helped reshape Americans’ views on sexuality, family and marriage.

But this change results from Hollywood’s powerful homosexual culture, whose ideological leaders tolerate no dissent — even from other homosexuals — and who have filled a vacuum in the industry left by the absence of faithful Christians.

... More than 5,000 members of the rich and famous attended the Los Angeles GLAAD Media Awards in April, which honored President Bill Clinton with the Advocate for Change Award. Clinton has apologized for signing into federal law the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which now faces a constitutional challenge in the U.S. Supreme Court.

However, GLAAD has made known that not all homosexuals in Hollywood are welcome, especially when they step out of line with GLAAD’s agenda. Bret Easton Ellis, screenwriter and author of the book American Psycho, took to Twitter to claim that GLAAD had banned him from the awards ceremony over controversial tweets criticizing what he called the “politically correct gay agenda.”

GLAAD's vice president of communications, Rich Ferraro, told the Hollywood Reporter that GLAAD did not want Ellis and his tweets overshadowing an event “advocating for equality in the Boy Scouts, marriage and across the country.”

By NOM Staff | Posted in Culture, Marriage, Media, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (0)

Video: Sen. Cruz Mentions the IRS Targeting NOM

May 20, 2013 – 8:00 am

Sen. Ted Cruz (TX) used NOM's example as a particularly egregious example of the IRS targeting conservative groups:

By NOM Staff | Posted in Congress, IRS, Marriage, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (0)

Highlight Reel: IRS Scrutinized by Congress Over Leaked NOM Documents

May 18, 2013 – 12:00 pm

Here are some highlights from yesterday's Ways and Means House Committee hearing on the IRS targeting conservative groups. NOM's case was mentioned several times:

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Marriage, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (4)

Audio: NOM's Eastman on Mike Huckabee Show: IRS Targeted Us

May 18, 2013 – 10:15 am

Our Chairman John Eastman explained to listeners of the Mike Huckabee show what is happening and why it matters:

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Marriage, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (2)

Video: NOM's Eastman on Cavuto (FoxNews Business)

May 17, 2013 – 9:45 am

Neil Cavuto on FoxNews Business devoted an entire segment last night during prime time to our announcement we will sue the IRS for illegally divulging our confidential tax returns:

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Marriage, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (7)

Text: Sen. McConnell's Remarks on the Senate Floor: IRS Targeting of NOM "Clearly Merits Investigation"

May 16, 2013 – 3:30 pm

Today Senator Minority Leader Mitch McConnell discussed at length NOM's situation on the floor of the U.S. Senate and says it merits investigation:

...“Last May, Senator Hatch — the top Republican on the Finance Committee — sent a letter to the IRS inquiring about reports that someone at the IRS had leaked confidential donor information from NOM to an advocacy group whose political goals were in direct conflict with its own.

“NOM has since released documents suggesting that this information came from one source — from within the IRS itself. All this took place, by the way, in the middle of a national political campaign.

“Significantly, one of the NOM donors whose name was leaked was none other than Mitt Romney. What a coincidence. And what about the group it was leaked to?

“Well, it was headed by a guy who was named a co-chair of the Obama campaign, and who published the confidential donor information on the website of the organization he ran – an organization opposed to the goals of NOM.

“So here’s another situation that, at the very least, clearly merits investigation. There are allegations here that someone at the IRS committed a very serious crime that had the effect of chilling the speech of a political organization that happened to be on the wrong side of the current Administration.

“Yet, a year later, Senator Hatch has yet to hear anything back from the IRS. And, according to the folks at NOM, neither have they."

You can read his entire set of remarks here.

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Marriage, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (7)

Video: NOM's Eastman on Fox News Greta Van Susteren

May 16, 2013 – 9:45 am

Last night our Chairman John Eastman appeared on Greta Van Susteren to discuss the IRS leak of NOM's documents:

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Law, Marriage, Media, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (9)

NOM Chairman Eastman in USA Today: IRS Committed Political Sabotage

May 16, 2013 – 8:00 am

NOM's Chairman John Eastman has published a column in USAToday which we urge you to read and share!

"...For the IRS to leak any organization's tax return to its political opponents is an outrageous breach of ethics and, if proven, constitutes a felony. Every organization — liberal and conservative — should shudder at the idea of the IRS playing politics with its confidential tax return information. But the situation here is even more egregious because the head of the HRC was at the time serving as a national co-chair of President Obama's re-election campaign.

The release of NOM's confidential tax return to the Human Rights Campaign is the canary in the coal mine of IRS corruption. Contrary to assertions that the targeting of Tea Party groups was an error in judgment by low-level IRS bureaucrats, the release of NOM's confidential data to a group headed by an Obama campaign co-chair suggests the possibility of complicity at the highest levels of politics and government. This wasn't a low-level error in judgment; it was a conscious act to reward a prominent Obama supporter while punishing an opponent.

That's the reason the IRS has not been very interested in getting to the bottom of what happened. Federal investigators have interviewed NOM officials about the matter, but our efforts to find out what has become of the investigation have been stonewalled at every turn."

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Law, Marriage, Politics, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (6)

Politico, The Hill, Fox News, Breitbart, HotAir Cover NOM's Announcement on Suing the IRS

May 15, 2013 – 10:00 am

More and more top news outlets are drawing attention to this important story!

Politico:

"...In April 2012, the Huffington Post and the Human Rights Campaign, a gay rights group, posted IRS documents indicating GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney had given $10,000 to the anti-gay marriage group. While the same inspector general who uncovered the IRS’ targeting of conservative groups was investigating the case, NOM has been frustrated with the pace of the investigation."

The Hill:

"...For over a year, NOM has argued that the IRS directly leaked confidential tax information, which included a list of private donors. With the IRS back under harsh scrutiny after it apologized for targeting Tea Party groups, NOM is taking legal action, and inviting other conservative causes to do so as well."

FoxNews:

"...Accusations of improper IRS behavior surfaced again in 2012 when a prominent anti-gay marriage group accused the agency of leaking private tax files that listed then-presidential candidate Mitt Romney's group as a contributor. The National Organization for Marriage documents were later published by a group whose president was tied to the Obama re-election campaign.

NOM claimed that someone from the IRS fed the liberal Human Rights Campaign documents listing its 2008 contributors. On that list was a $10,000 donation from Romney’s political action committee. The Human Rights Campaign then published the documents online, saying it had uncovered one of the group’s “top secret donors,” and accused Romney of attacking lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality."

Breitbart.com:

"...The National Organization for Marriage, a conservative organization whose confidential records were leaked by the IRS to its left-wing critics, announced on Tuesday it will sue the tax agency for damages. NOM’s 2008 tax return was, according to a press release the group sent out on Tuesday, taken by the IRS and subsequently leaked to its primary political opponent the Human Rights Campaign."

HotAir.com:

"...Matt Lewis reported on the leak at the time, which culminated in HuffPo trying to make political hay of a Romney-affiliated donation to NOM. In 2012, NOM requested an investigation by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the same office that authored the draft report on the IRS’ targeting of conservative groups, which is to be released this week. They were interviewed, but never heard anything of an investigation’s process: “Nothing has come of the investigation if there is indeed one, and the agency has refused to answer any questions about the status of its examination,” NOM said in a press release."

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Marriage, Media, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (25)

Top of Drudge: Claim: Obama Co-Chair Attacked Romney With Leaked IRS Docs

May 15, 2013 – 9:15 am

Our press release yesterday is now top news on Drudge Report this morning:

That headline links to this story on Brietbart.com:

One of President Barack Obama's re-election campaign co-chairmen used a leaked document from the IRS to attack GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney during the 2012 election, according to the National Organization for Marriage (NOM).

NOM, a pro-traditional marriage organization, claims the IRS leaked their 2008 confidential financial documents to the rival Human Rights Campaign. Those NOM documents were published on the Huffington Post on March 30, 2012. At that time, Joe Solmonese, a left-wing activist and Huffington Post contributor, was the president of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC). Solmonese was also a 2012 Obama campaign co-chairman.

... “Not only has Romney signed NOM’s radical marriage pledge, now we know he’s one of the donors that NOM has been so desperate to keep secret all these years,” Solmonese added.

Solmonese resigned his position at HRC the next day and took up a position as an Obama campaign co-chair.

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Law, Marriage, President Obama, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (2)

Human Events: More IRS Abuses of Power Against Conservative Groups (Including NOM)

May 14, 2013 – 11:45 am

Shout-out to John Hayward of Human Events for including NOM's longstanding complaint along with other alleged IRS abuses:

"...The National Organization for Marriage, a prominent group that holds the opinion Obama used to agree with, has a long-standing complaint about confidential tax information somehow finding its way into the hands of the Human Rights Campaign, a group that supports Obama’s new position… and is headed by the co-chair of the Obama 2012 campaign. NOM renewed its calls for justice when the IRS scandal exploded."

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Marriage, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (3)

WSJ's Taranto Notes: HRC/HuffPo Published NOM's 990

May 14, 2013 – 10:15 am

James Taranto of the Wall Street Journal lists our case as a possible example of the IRS targeting groups for ideological reasons:

• In March 2012, the Puffington Host published a confidential form that the National Organization for Marriage, which opposes same-sex marriage, had filed with the IRS. The website obtained the document from the Human Rights Campaign, a pro-same-sex-marriage outfit. In a press release issued today, NOM says its analysis of the images "has determined that the documents came directly from the Internal Revenue Service."

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Law, Marriage, Politics, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (23)

The Daily Caller: IRS Admits to Targeting Conservative Groups, But Did They Also Leak Documents?

May 14, 2013 – 8:00 am

Matt K. Lewis of The Daily Caller points out that most reporters have neglected to report that the IRS is guilty not only of targeting conservative groups, but also of leaking NOM's private tax documents -- clearly a broader investigation is needed:

A little over a year ago, I reported that, ”It is likely that someone at the Internal Revenue Service illegally leaked confidential donor information showing a contribution from Mitt Romney’s political action committee to the National Organization for Marriage, says the group.”

Now — on the heels of news the IRS’s apology for having targeted conservative groups — NOM is renewing their demand that the Internal Revenue Service reveal the identity of the people responsible.

“There is little question that one or more employees at the IRS stole our confidential tax return and leaked it to our political enemies, in violation of federal law,” said NOM’s president Brian Brow, in a prepared statement. “The only questions are who did it, and whether there was any knowledge or coordination between people in the White House, the Obama reelection campaign and the Human Rights Campaign. We and the American people deserve answers.”

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Law, Marriage, Politics, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (5)

Politico: NOM Calls for Hearing After IRS Flap

May 13, 2013 – 2:45 pm

Our press release today on the growing IRS scandal and its connection to what happened to our private tax return is gaining attention -- including on capitol hill and Politico:

The National Organization for Marriage hopes revelations about the IRS unfairly targeting conservative groups can revitalize an investigation into who leaked its donor information last year.

“This is what happens in the Soviet Union,” NOM President Brian Brown told POLITICO on Monday. “This is not what happens in the United States of America.”

In April 2012, the Huffington Post and the Human Rights Campaign posted documents showing GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney donated $10,000 to NOM in 2008. The anti-gay marriage group immediately cried foul and called for the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration — the same investigators who are set to release a report on the IRS targeting later this week — to investigate, accusing IRS employees of leaking the documents.

... Brown said the group wants a congressional hearing to look into the document release, since the group’s attempts to use the Freedom of Information Act to stay updated on the case have been unsuccessful.

“Without a congressional hearing and Congress’ subpoena power, where are we?” Brown asked. “All we’re getting is what [the IRS] wants to say.”

By NOM Staff | Posted in IRS, Law, Marriage, President Obama, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (24)

LTE: Rhode Island’s Elected Officials Gave in to Bullying

May 13, 2013 – 9:00 am

Marla Parker writes to The Westerly Sun:

This is in response to the April 22 letter to The Sun by Chris Irwin in which she charges the National Organization for Marriage and the Rev. Raymond Suriani with “bullying.” I ask “who’s bullying whom?”

It is Ms. Irwin’s baseless complaint to the IRS against the Rev. Suriani that constitutes bullying.

She contacted the IRS alleging that the Rev. Suriani engaged in political lobbying when he reminded his parishioners of church teaching on homosexuality and marriage, and encouraged them to exercise their right as American citizens by contacting their senator, whose duty is to represent them and their views at the Statehouse.

This harassment leveled against the Rev. Suriani is a typical intimidation tactic designed to silence all those who disagree with the gay agenda, and it is just the tip of the iceberg. In Sweden and Canada, ministers were jailed for quoting from the Bible and preaching against homosexual behavior once marriage was redefined there.

The redefinition of marriage impacts personal lives well beyond same-sex couples. One’s choice of a partner does not concern me, but when they come to our legislatures and courts and force the rest of us to recognize and accept their relationship as identical to that of a man and a woman, it affects everyone.