Handpicked News: DOMA Red Tape, Legal in Washington, Gavin Newsom 2014, Polygamist Leader…

Same-Sex Marriage Becomes Legal in Washington (at Least One Part) Chief Seattle would be proud. The tribe he led in the late 1700s, the Suquamish, has made a giant leap toward equality by allowing and recognizing same-sex marriage. According to the Kitsap Sun,the Suquamish Tribal Council in Washington State voted Monday to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples on its reservation near Seattle, at the request of Heather Purser, a lesbian tribal member.                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Lesbian Soldier Snagged in DOMA Red Tape  Jessica Lohmeier, who served in the Army Reserves for two years, had a boy in 2009. She told WILX News that after raising James with her partner Lauren Russell for two years, she is ready to reenlist. However, the military requires that all parents with full custody of their children, like Lohmeier, show a marriage license as proof that a spouse will be able to take care of the child if the enlisted parent is assigned overseas. The policy states that the military may not “enlist an unmarried individual with a child under 18,” according to the report.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Gay-Friendly Programming Can Be Family Programming, Among Other Things  The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamationjust named ABC Family the network that does the best job at portraying gay characters — and as portraying them as something other than simply white urbanized men. Apparently, 55 percent of the network’s original programming hours have images of LGBT people, which seems like an impressively high ratio considering the actual number of gay people in the population, though it would be interesting to see also what percentage of their characters are gay, and how many of those programming hours feature gay characters instead of having them in the mix or in the background. 

Romney Signs Anti-Gay Group’s Campaign Pledge Ben Smith reports that Mitt Romney has signed-on to the National Organization for Marriage (NOM’s) anti-gay campaign pledge, joining fellow candidates Rick Santorum and Michele Bachmann. The document — while far less controversial than a  similar effort by Iowa’s FAMiLY LEADER — commits the 2012 contenders to strongly opposing the advancement of LGBT equality.

Gavin Newsom Fundraising In The Lead As Candidates Look To 2014 This article comes to us courtesy of California Watch. By Chase Davis The semiannual state campaign filing deadline passed this week, and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom isn’t being shy about his future ambitions. The onetime gubernatorial candidate raised nearly $300,000 in the first six months of this year, far outpacing the state’s other major officeholders as they begin to look toward their next moves in 2014. Both Newsom and Attorney General Kamala Harris have been mentioned as gubernatorial candidates-in-waiting if Gov. Jerry Brown decides against another run in 2014. For her part, Harris raised about $112,000 for her 2014 campaign committee so far this year.

Fighter Jets Intercept 75-Year-Old Woman’s Plane During Obama Chicago Visit SOUTH BARRINGTON, Ill. — Two F-16 fighter jets intercepted a plane flown by a 75-year-old woman when it entered restricted airspace during President Barack Obama’s Chicago visit. Police say the South Barrington woman was flying the plane by herself and wasn’t aware she was in restricted airspace. They say she didn’t seem shaken, but was surprised. South Barrington is a northwestern Chicago suburb with about 4,500 residents. Obama was in Chicago for a birthday fundraiser.

Polygamist Leader Convicted Of Child Sex Abuse A Texas jury has convicted polygamist leader Warren Jeffs on child sexual assault charges in a case stemming from two young followers he took as brides in what his church calls “spiritual marriages.” The 55-year-old head of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints stood stone-faced as the verdict was read.The charges came after a massive 2008 raid of the church’s remote West Texas ranch. Jeffs faces up to life in prison. A forensic analyst testified that Jeffs was an almost certain DNA match to the child of a 15-year-old mother. Jeffs also was accused of assaulting a 12-year-old girl. Jeffs acted as his own attorney and claimed he was a victim of religious persecution.