Richard Socarides: Archive

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Richard Socarides on the IRS-tea party scandal: ‘This is a disaster’

May 14th

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IRS Targeting Conservative Groups? Former Reagan political director Ed Rollins and former White House special assistant Richard Socarides on report that the IRS was targeting conservati…

May 11th

May 6th

Apr 25th

Apr 22nd

Apr 9th

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MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts speaks with former Clinton aide Richard Socarides, out gay Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI), and former RNC Chair Ken Mehlman who led the Republican amicus brief opposing Proposition 8, about Supreme Court arguments on Prop 8 and DOMA.

Apr 8th

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Former Clinton aide Richard Socarides and NOM’s Maggie Gallagher appeared on FOX News (3/26/13) to give their take on the Supreme Court and Proposition 8.

Apr 8th

Mar 29th

Mar 27th

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Mar 15th

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Mar 11th

Mar 8th

Mar 3rd

Mar 1st

Obama's Next Choice on Gay Marriage - Feb. 15,...

February 15, 2013 – NewYorker.com OBAMA’S NEXT CHOICE ON GAY MARRIAGE Posted by Richard Socarides http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2013/02/obamas-next-choice-on-gay-marriage.html Ever since President Obama’s sweeping embrace of gay equality in his recent Inaugural Address, the question for legal observers has been whether his Justice Department will follow up with Supreme...

Feb 15th

Feb 13th

NewYorker.com - Ed Koch and the Politics of the...

February 2, 2013 ED KOCH AND THE POLITICS OF THE CLOSET Posted by Richard Socarides Ed Koch, whose brashness and authenticity about almost anything and everything came to define New York City in the seventies and eighties, would for the most part tell people who asked about his sexual orientation that it was none of their business, although it was clear that he was trying to give the...

Feb 2nd

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Feb 2nd

NewYorker.com January 21, 2013

AMERICA’S MOST IMPORTANT GAY-RIGHTS SPEECH? Posted by Richard Socarides No one anticipated it, but President Barack Obama used the occasion of his second Inaugural Address to give what was perhaps the most important gay-rights speech in American history. Inaugural Addresses are, by their definition, important and defining occasions, when Presidents set the tone and direction for the coming...

Feb 1st

JUDGING HAGEL’S GAY-RIGHTS RECORD - NewYorker.com

January 7, 2013 JUDGING HAGEL’S GAY-RIGHTS RECORD Posted by Richard Socarides It’s easy to understand why having Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense appeals to President Obama. The appointment of Hagel, a former Republican senator with war-hero stature who served in Vietnam but who is not part of the right-wing defense establishment, has the allure of seeming bipartisan, and also gets Obama a...

Jan 10th

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ON GAY MARRIAGE, IS ILLINOIS NEXT? NewYorker.com

January 2, 2013 ON GAY MARRIAGE, IS ILLINOIS NEXT? Posted by Richard Socarides Seemingly out of nowhere, Illinois, the fifth largest state, with a population of almost thirteen million people, is likely about to become the tenth state to allow same-sex marriage. It could happen within the next week, during the lame-duck session of the state legislature, which ends on January 8th. If it does,...

Jan 10th

Dec. 7, 2012 - GAY MARRIAGE COMES TO THE SUPREME...

Posted by Richard Socarides Observers of the Supreme Court have, over the past few months, considered it likely that the Court would decide to tackle the question of the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). But more than a few thought it would leave things there, taking the relatively easy way out and ducking the potentially historic implications of the lawsuit...

Dec 9th

NewYorker.com: OBAMA’S GAY-RIGHTS TO-DO LIST:...

November 27, 2012 Posted by Richard Socarides The election was three weeks ago, but gays, lesbians, and their supporters are still jubilant over the results—which many consider a turning point for the gay rights movement. Not only was the first pro-gay-marriage President reëlected but his support for gay rights helped put him over the top, energizing base constituencies and generating...

Nov 28th

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Will shifting public opinion on same-sex marriage influence the Supreme Court? Richard Socarides, former senior advisor to President Clinton and the former president of Equality Matters, joins “Viewpoint” host Eliot Spitzer to consider how the Supreme Court might choose to proceed on the issue of marriage equality. “We are almost assuredly in for a big decision from the Supreme Court by the...

Nov 28th

Out100: Richard Socarides BY OUT.COM EDITORS Strategist. Photography by M. Sharkey A former special assistant to President Bill Clinton, Socarides has been a frequent commentator on news programs, especially during this election year. His staunch Democratic partisanship and spin-doctor expertise (he founded the LGBT watchdog arm of Media Matters) make him a forceful, quotable source on...

Nov 17th

The Gay-Rights Election - Out.com

BY RICHARD SOCARIDES Richard Socarides says politicians will recognize that their embrace of us is not only the right thing to do, but leads to success at the ballot box. Probably the best thing about the election, for me, was how many “how far we’ve come” moments it provided. We won our first marriage equality ballot initiatives — in fact, winning all four of them: in Maine,...

Nov 8th

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How will Libya security debate shape the presidential town hall debate? Ana Navarro and Richard Socarides weigh in

Oct 16th

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CNN:A clear winner in VP debate? (Richard Socarides)10-12-12

Oct 12th

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Democratic Analyst Richard Socarides, Republican Strategist Ana Navarro and CNN’s Dana Bash analyze first presidential debate

Oct 5th

The Daily Beast: Romney’s Marriage-Equality Fail -...

Mitt Romney Stands Athwart As Democrats Make Gay-Marriage History Romney supporters who also support gay-rights marriage comfort themselves that being against gay rights is not his priority. That’s not good enough, writes Democrat and gay-rights advocate Richard Socarides. by Richard Socarides | September 5, 2012 4:45 AM EDT Last night in Charlotte, the Democratic Party made history as...

Sep 13th

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Political activists look to follow LGBT community’s lead in dealing with Obama Richard Socarides, former senior adviser to President Clinton, explains why the gay rights community has reason to cheer heading into the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C. Democrats can look forward to a party platform in support of marriage equality, and it’s rumored that Michelle Obama might...

Sep 2nd

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Richard Socarides, former president of Equality Matters and former LGBT advisor to President Clinton, analyzes yesterday’s Mike Huckabee-sponsored “Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day” with “Viewpoint” host Eliot Spitzer. Huckabee, former governor of Arkansas, called on people to show their support for the fast-food chain after it came under fire from gay rights activists, who have taken issue with...

Aug 3rd

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Richard Socarides, former president of Equality Matters and former LGBT advisor to President Clinton, and “Viewpoint” host Eliot Spitzer assess how President Barack Obama has established an important legacy on gay rights. “Some of us, myself included, may not have been too happy with him in the first two years, because we thought he moved very slowly. But you know, all is forgiven,” Socarides...

Aug 3rd

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Forget Southern comfort: Chick-fil-A’s anti-gay stance is an ‘embrace of the past’ Richard Socarides, former LGBT advisor to President Clinton, talks to “Viewpoint” host Eliot Spitzer about the latest in the battle between gay rights supporters and fast food chain Chick-fil-A.

Jul 27th

Original Equality Matters reporting on Chick Fil...

Here are links to the original Equality Matters reporting on Chick Fil A: http://equalitymatters.org/factcheck/201103220004 http://equalitymatters.org/factcheck/201207020001

Jul 26th

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With Zach Wahls on CNN Staring Point talking about the Boy Scouts

Jul 18th

HOW WOULD JOHN ROBERTS RULE ON GAY-MARRIAGE CASES?...

July 9, 2012 Often the first question the lawyers Ted Olson and David Boies get when they talk about their effort to overturn California’s anti-gay Proposition 8 is this: Are there five votes on the Supreme Court for their case? Olson, a Republican (and former U.S. Solicitor General), and Boies, a Democrat, are the dream team who led opposing legal camps in Bush v. Gore when that case was...

Jul 10th

Richard Socarides And Marsha Blackburn Face Off... →

Jul 9th

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Is Obama’s latest push for gay rights a sign he’s considering his legacy?

Jul 6th

Jun 30th

NewYorker.com: IS THE BATTLE FOR GAY RIGHTS OVER?

June 22, 2012 Posted by Richard Socarides http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2012/06/is-the-battle-for-gay-rights-over.html In the nineteen-fifties, the State Department went through something like a purge, systematically seeking out and firing gay employees, who, given the times, had been living closeted lives. Linda Hirshman, writing about the episode in her new book “Victory: the...

Jun 26th