Tag Archives: Topic: District of Columbia

“Lieberman wants to fully revive the program and said yesterday that he has a commitment from Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) to bring the matter to the floor for debate and a vote this year.”

Harry R. Jackson, Jr. writes at the Washington Post: “In a predominantly black city that has lived through the worst facets of discrimination, a strange brand of reverse bigotry is being perpetrated. Defenders of virtue and protectors of family and age-appropriate education of children are being called ‘bigots.’ This is ironic in a city that was built by slave labor and that has a bronze statue on top of the U.S. Capitol called ‘Freedom.’ Today the District of Columbia is less democratic, less free and less just because it sanctions same-sex marriage reciprocity.”

LifeNews: “The budget Obama submitted to Congress urges the House and Senate to repeal a law sometimes called the Dornan amendment that has prevented tax-funded abortion in the District of Columbia for many years.”

Fox News: “An estimated 1,000 parents, children and community leaders attended the afternoon protest in Washington’s Freedom Plaza, where they called on D.C. politicians to help preserve a federal school choice program that currently assists more than 1,700 students with scholarships worth up to $7,500.”

UPI: “Jason Chaffetz, who was elected to Congress in 2008, is the ranking Republican on the subcommittee supervising the district, which consists entirely of the city of Washington, The Salt Lake Tribune reports.”

Washington Post: “President Obama will seek to extend the controversial D.C. school voucher program until all 1,716 participants have graduated from high school, although no new students will be accepted, according to an administration official who has reviewed budget details scheduled for release tomorrow.”

“After the vote, enraged African American ministers stormed the hallway outside the council chambers and vowed that they will work to oust the members who supported the bill . . . security officers and D.C. police were called in to clear the hallway.”

The D.C. Council has voted to recognize same-sex “marriages” performed in other states.

William McGurn writes at the Wall Street Journal: “Some hypocrisies are apparently more equal than others. If, for example, you are a politician who preaches ‘traditional values’ and you get caught in a hotel with a woman who is not your wife, the press is going to have a field day with your tartuffery. If, however, you are a pol who piously tells inner-city families that public schools are the answer — and you do this while safely ensconcing your own kids in some private haven — the press corps mostly winks. Tomorrow afternoon at 1 o’clock in Washington, we’ll learn if anything has changed. Two groups — D.C. Children First and D.C. Parents for School Choice — are holding a rally at Freedom Plaza, just across from the offices of the city government . . . ”

One News Now (AP): “Black clergy have led a rally against homosexual marriage in the nation’s capital.”

Chuck Norris writes at Townhall:
“Despite the growing public preference for private education, Congress recently canceled the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program, which was created in 2004 to offer students from low-income families in the nation’s capital an opportunity to join the voucher educational community. The law provided $14 million in scholarships to help pay for tuition at private schools of their choosing. But no longer. Why did Congress nix the program, especially when recent studies showed that students receiving vouchers since the program’s inception were academically 18.9 months ahead of their peers?”

Michelle Boorstein writes at the Washington Post: We’ll know more about who is involved as this coalition builds. Right now it’s being led by Bishop Harry Jackson Jr., minister of Hope Christian Church in College Park . . . In a letter sent to clergy, the coalition says, “If we fail to act now, history will ask – ‘Where were the pastors?’”

“A final vote on May 5 is poised to confirm a preliminary vote last week by D.C.’s city council to recognize same-sex ‘marriages’ performed in other states . . . Some commentators have speculated that it could also incite Congressional discussion over the (DOMA).”

Christian Newswire: “On Tuesday, April 14, from 10:30 a.m. to the end of Mr. Obama’s speech, DC area Pro-life leaders and activists will protest at the entrance to Georgetown University at 37th and O Street. Their presence is to denounce Georgetown, who invited President Obama to speak, knowing the scandal and outrage surrounding his scheduled speech at Notre Dame on May 17 . . . ”

Marc Fisher writes at the Washington Post: “Catania argues that there is no better time than this year. Next year, an election year, would be more difficult. Fear of Congress is natural, but probably overblown, Catania says. ‘They’ve never actually reversed a law in the history of home rule; they’ve only prevented us from funding things’. . . ”

Washington Post: “Education Secretary Arne Duncan has decided not to admit any new students to the D.C. voucher program, which allows low-income children to attend private schools. The abrupt decision — made a week after 200 families had been told that their children were being awarded scholarships for the coming fall — comes despite a new study showing some initial good results for students in the program and before the Senate has had a chance to hold promised hearings. For all the talk about putting children first, it’s clear that the special interests that have long opposed vouchers are getting their way.”

World Magazine: “. . . Alliance Defense Fund attorney Jim Campbell. “The California decision really involves the right of the people to enact constitutional amendments in their state,” Campbell said. “While it involves the definition of marriage, the legal issue is very distinct from what we saw in Iowa, Vermont and D.C.”

Ezra Klein: “Due to D.C.’s strange system of governance, the District’s laws are subject to approval by Congress. If D.C. passes a gay marriage ordinance, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the subcommittee that handles District matters will have to either reject D.C.’s decision or accept it.”

AP: “A preliminary vote by the District of Columbia city council to recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere puts the issue on a path to Congress, which has final say over D.C.’s laws. That may force lawmakers to take up the politically dicey debate after years of letting it play out in the states.”

Washington Post“: . . . the campaign, titled ‘Rediscover DCPS,’ has been launched by Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee as one step toward stemming the decline in public confidence in a system whose enrollment has plummeted from 80,000 students three decades ago to 45,000 this year. ”

NY Times: “Gay-rights groups say that momentum from back-to-back victories on same-sex marriage in Vermont and Iowa could spill into other states, particularly since at least nine other legislatures are considering measures this year to allow marriage between gay couples.”

Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund say that the legislation is a textbook rebuttal of the argument that “civil unions” are a satisfactory compromise to protect marriage.

Washington Times: “The D.C. Council Tuesday overwhelmingly voted in favor of legislation recognizing same-sex marriages from other states as marriage in the District — a move lauded by lawmakers as a step toward legalizing gay marriage in the city.”

Virginia Walden Ford writes at National Review:

. . . In 2009, few wrongs are greater than the inequality that endures in American education. More than a half century after the Supreme Court rejected segregation in our nation’s schools, minority children are still less likely to receive a quality education.

Here in the nation’s capital, generations of children have passed through the District’s public schools without being prepared to succeed in life. Historically, they have been told by the government which school to attend, and if that school wasn’t good, they have been told by politicians that reform was underway and things would be better soon.

Posted: 03/27/2009

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Category: Marriage & Family

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Source: article.nationalreview.com

Tags: Category: Marriage and Family, Topic: District of Columbia, Topic: School Choice

Pacific Justice Institute: “A federal judge in Washington, D.C., today dismissed a lawsuit filed by atheist Michael Newdow, the American Humanist Association and others which had claimed that the traditions of saying prayers and ‘so help me God’ at the presidential inauguration were unconstitutional.”

CBS: “White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs insinuated today that President Obama will reverse a provision in the omnibus spending bill to terminate school vouchers for underprivileged students in Washington, D.C. ”

Religion Clause Blog:  It appears that Congress has effectively ended the school voucher program in the District of Columbia that has been popular with many parents. More than half of the students receiving vouchers attend religious– mostly Roman Catholic– schools.

Americans U. for Separation of Church and State:  ”Americans United for Separation of Church and State today praised the U.S. Senate for refusing to provide funding indefinitely for a controversial private school voucher plan in Washington, D.C. . . . …

Americans U. for Separation of Church and State: “Americans United for Separation of Church and State has called on the Senate to reject Sen. John Ensign’s proposal to extend Washington, D.C.’s private school voucher plan.”

The Associated Press reports: Education Secretary Arne Duncan said Wednesday that poor children getting vouchers to attend private schools in the District of Columbia should be allowed to stay there, putting the Obama administration at odds with Democrats trying to …

Dan Lips & Robert C. Enlow write at National Review: “Any doubts about congressional leaders’ priorities on education were erased Monday with the release of the new $450 billion omnibus bill. It includes a provision to eliminate the D.C. Opportunity …

CNSNews: “The U.S. Senate voted Tuesday to allow floor debate on a bill that would grant the District of Columbia a full-fledged congressman in the U.S. House of Representatives . . . “

The Second International Symposium on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide, centered on the theme “Never Again,” will take place May 29 – 30, 2009 at the National Conference Center located at 18980 Upper Belmont Pl., Landsdowne Virginia, 20176, near the Washington DC, Dulles Airport.

Currently, D.C.’s only representation in Congress is one seat in the House of Representatives with voting rights on amendments to bills, but not as to their eventual passage or defeat. Today, that seat is held by Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) who share Reid’s optimism. “I do believe we have the votes,” Norton recently told reporters. However, she warned of “mischief” from opponents, including amendments intended to derail the bill.

PR Newswire: . . . The United States filed a complaint in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in September 2008, alleging that WMATA violated Title VII by failing to reasonably accommodate and provide equal employment opportunities to …

LifeNews: “George Washington University college Democrats group is facing accusations that some of its members vandalized a pro-life display. A campus affiliate of the pro-life conservative group Young America’s Foundation erected the pro-life display last month featuring crosses to remember …

The Religion Clause Blog reports: “On Friday, a group of Christian activists filed suit in federal district court in Washington, DC seeking to prevent DC police from interfering with their planned chalk-art demonstration near the White House on January 24 …

The U. of Arkansas School Choice Demonstration Project has issued a new study that includes the abstract copied below.  The study is here (pdf 4.29 mb). ________ During the spring of 2004, the first federally funded voucher program – the …

“The complaint . . . asks the court to enjoin the Chief Justice . . . from adding “so help me God” to the constitutionally prescribed presidential oath [and] to declare unconstitutional the use of clergy to deliver an invocation and benediction . . . ”

The Washington Times reports: A bill legalizing gay marriage in the District likely would pass with a majority of council support. But whether it’s in the city’s best interest to pursue it as a priority next year, and whether the …

The Wall Street Journal reports: Guess who recently said the following: “Tenure is the holy grail of teacher unions, but it has no educational value for kids; it only benefits adults.” A right-wing blogger? No, those are the words of …

“Gay marriage in D.C. next year? Yes, says openly gay D.C. city council member David Catania, a former Republican who holds an at-large seat.”

A 12-year-old New York boy with brain cancer has died after his family battled a hospital to keep him on a ventilator.

D.C. Councilmember Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large) announced this week plans to hold a hearing Dec. 12 to discuss “hate crimes in the District of Columbia,” with a focus on anti-gay hate crimes.

The Religion Clause Blog links to this Washington Post report and summarizes a case involving efforts to a DC hospital to remove life support from a 12 year old boy over the objections of his Jewish parents. The Hospital indicates …

The Fort Wayne News Sentinel reports: A Washington, D.C.-based legal advocacy group specializing in religious and pro-life causes has offered to represent Allen County – for free! – if it is sued for trying to protect women who have had …

Advocates called the ruling groundbreaking because a federal judge has now ruled that discriminating against someone for changing genders is sex discrimination under federal law.

The Jerusalem Post reports:  “I’m not the perfect Jew,” is how Chasin, a 40-year-old Fire Department paramedic from Virginia, puts it. But he has always strongly identified as one . . . ”The beard is my way of celebrating and practicing,” …

The ACLU has issued this press release that begins: “The ACLU of the National Capital Area, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit today challenging the District of Columbia’s …

If Democrats expand their majority in Congress and California voters uphold same-sex marriage, a gay marriage bill is likely to be approved by the D.C. City Council as early as April 2009, according to activists and City Hall insiders.

Brendan Daly, a spokesman for Pelosi, said in a statement Tuesday that she “fully appreciates the sanctity of family” and based her views on conception on the “views of Saint Augustine, who said: ‘… the law does not provide that the act (abortion) pertains to homicide, for there cannot yet be said to be a live soul in a body that lacks sensation …”’

In a rare public rebuke of a top politician, the archbishop of Washington said Monday that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was incorrect when she recently said the moment of conception has long been a matter of controversy within the Catholic Church.

Diane Schroer, a 52-year-old former Army Special Forces commander, testified yesterday in federal court that she was “disappointed and dismayed” when an official at the Library of Congress rescinded a job offer even though she was the star candidate.

A transgender job bias suit against the Library of Congress moves to trial Tuesday in federal court in Washington, D.C., with potentially major implications for federal anti-discrimination policy . . .

WTOPNews.com has this report that begins: WASHINGTON – History teachers tell students that slavery ended in the U.S. in 1865, but sources tell WTOP that a “hidden epidemic” of child sex-slavery persists in this area and nationwide.

The Religion Clause Blog reports: “Washington D.C.’s Third Church of Christ, Scientist, yesterday filed a federal lawsuit challenging a decision by the city’s Historic Preservation Review Board (see prior posting) that prevents the church from tearing down its current building …

The Washington Post reports: ANYONE LOOKING for a symbol of the contempt that D.C. officials show toward charter schools need go no further than 2501 11th St. NW. There sits the shuttered Meyer Elementary School. Three blocks away is a …

HSLDA reports: Among other things, the new regulations require annual notification of a parent’s intent to homeschool on a future form developed by OSSE (Office of the State Superintendent of Education), maintenance of a portfolio of schoolwork, and up to …

The Washington Blade reports: Spagnoletti, who is gay, drafted the opinion for former D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams, who refused to release the memo . . . Anonymous sources have told the Blade the opinion states same-sex marriages would be recognized …

Virginia Walden Ford, Executive Director of DC Parents for School Choice, Inc., has this article on National Review. She reports that former DC Mayor Marion Berry long opposed school choice has recently written in support of school choice. Why? “‘Moms, …

The Washington Post reports: Students in the D.C. school voucher program, the first federal initiative to spend taxpayer dollars on private school tuition, generally did no better on reading and math tests after two years than public school peers, a …

The Washington Blade has an interview with the mayor discussing this and other issues. It reports: . . . Blade: The issue of same-sex marriage became the focus of national attention last month when the California Supreme Court issued a …

The jail will continue to classify inmates based on their genitalia, but D.C. Department of Corrections has created additional security measures and formalized the possibility of placing a transgendered person into protective custody, according to a May 10 memo.

HSLDA has issued an email asking citizens to oppose proposed homeschool regulations in D.C.  More information about the regulations and contact information is here.

Emerging Issues in Embryo Donation and adoption will be the centerpiece of a first of its kind conference next month in Washington D.C.

The thing to remember about abuse and neglect is that it isn’t a homeschool issue – it’s a social and sometimes even a mental health issue. These things can and do happen in families who choose other forms of education.

WASHINGTON – Chicago federal Judge Mark Filip, slated to be the No. 2 official at the Justice Department, is caught in a standoff between Senate Democrats and the Bush administration, putting his nomination on hold. And he can thank one …

"This afternoon the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 10-7 to approve a bill that would grant federal judges a 29 percent pay raise . . . the Senate panel also adopted along party lines an amendment offered by Sen. Russ Feingold …