Date: Thu, 29 Jul 1999 17:21:44 -0500
From: Kevin Ivers <kivers@lcr.org>
Subject: LARGENT AMENDMENT DEFEATED

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE		CONTACT: Kevin Ivers
July 29, 1999				(202) 347-5306 x12

TABLES TURNED ON LARGENT AMENDMENT-- DEFEATED BY 2 VOTES IN HOUSE

Floor Speeches by Republicans Kolbe, Wilson, Foley, Support from GOP
Freshmen and GOP Vote-Switching from 1997 Turns Tide Against Anti-Gay
Provision

(WASHINGTON) In another stunning political defeat for the far right, the
Republican House voted to reject an amendment to the D.C. Appropriations
bill which would have prohibited adoptions by same-sex couples in the
District of Columbia.  In a vote of 213-215, the amendment offered by Rep.
Steve Largent (R-OK) was defeated after passing in 1997 on a vote of 227 to
192.

Among those leading the lobby effort against the Largent Amendment were
openly gay Councilmember David Catania (R) of Washington, D.C., who wrote
to House Speaker Dennis Hastert on July 27 in strong opposition to any
riders on the D.C. Appropriations bill, and the Capital Area Log Cabin
Club, which actively lobbies against intrusive and anti-gay riders each
year during the D.C. appropriations debate in Congress.

"It's another dramatic sign that the tide is turning against the far
right," said Richard Tafel, executive director of Log Cabin Republicans,
who lobbied Republicans in the House to oppose the Largent amendment.
"We're not only defeating their new initiatives like Hefley, but reversing
previous gains like this amendment.  The message is simple -- bashing gays
doesn't work, it hurts the party, and there are conservative Republicans
who will stand up and publicly oppose you if you try it."

Conservative Republican House members took to the floor to debate against
the measure, including openly gay Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ), chairman of the
Treasury/Postal Appropriations Subcommittee, Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL), who
also helped lead the opposition to the anti-gay Hefley Amendment in 1998,
and Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM), who gave an emotional opposition floor
speech about "the kids that nobody wanted" who would be harmed by the
amendment.  Thirty-five Republicans voted no, including five Republicans --
Rep. John Cooksey (R-LA), Rep. Thomas Ewing (R-IL), Rep. Wayne Gilchrest
(R-MD), Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA), and Rep. Mike Oxley (R-OH) -- who voted
yes in 1997.

Freshmen Republicans joined in the opposition, including Rep. Steve
Kuykendall (R-CA) and Rep. Judy Biggert (R-IL), both of whom were supported
by Log Cabin Republicans in 1998, and Rep. Doug Ose (R-CA).

Log Cabin Republicans is the nation's largest gay Republican organization,
with state and local chapters nationwide, a full-time Washington office and
a federal political action committee.

LIST OF REPUBLICANS VOTING NO ON LARGENT AMENDMENT
(Compiled from the THOMAS website)

Bass (NH)
Biggert (IL)
Bilbray (CA)
Boehlert (NY)
Bonilla (TX)
Camp (MI)
Campbell (CA)
Cooksey (LA)
Ewing (IL)
Foley (FL)
Franks (NJ)
Frelinghuysen (NJ)
Gilchrest (MD)
Gilman (NY)
Greenwood (PA)
Hobson (OH)
Horn (CA)
Houghton (NY)
Johnson (CT)
Kelly (NY)
Kolbe (AZ)
Kuykendall (CA)
LaTourette (OH)
Leach (IA)
Lewis (CA)
Miller (FL)
Morella (MD)
Ose (CA)
Oxley (OH)
Porter (IL)
Pryce (OH)
Shays (CT)
Thomas (CA)
Whitfield (KY)
Wilson (NM)

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Log Cabin Republicans		Kevin Ivers
(202) 347-5306 phone		Director of Public Affairs
(202) 347-5224 fax			http://www.lcr.org