LITTLE ROCK — Patrick Kennedy, a candidate for Congress in Arkansas’ 2nd District, announced on Tuesday his support of several proposals he said conventional wisdom has deemed “too dangerous to touch during campaign season” and urged his Democratic competitors to do likewise.
“With the arc of history demanding an end to inequality, I cannot stay silent,” said Kennedy, adding that 20 states, the District of Columbia and about 130 U.S. cities have outlawed workplace and housing discrimination based on sexual orientation.
“It’s time that the federal government follow the lead and recognize that no one should lose their job or apartment merely because they are gay,” he said.
Kennedy’s Web site, www. KennedyForArkansas. com, outlines his proposals, including addressing “racial bias in criminal sentencing, strengthening anti-hate-crime laws and repealing ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.’”
Since 1964, federal law has outlawed workplace discrimination based on race, sex, religion and national origin, he said, and later statutes added protections for age and disability.
“Title VII of the Civil Rights Act should be expanded to keep workers from losing their jobs merely because they are gay,” Kennedy said.
He also called for passing the Respect for Marriage Act, currently in committee at the U.S. House. It would repeal “the unconstitutional Defense of Marriage Act of 1996,” he said.
Sponsored by more than 100 congressmen, the Respect for Marriage Act “recognizes the rights of the individual states to make their own decisions on the issue of gay marriage, free of federal interference,” Kennedy said.
TV DEBATE
KATV, Channel 7, in Little Rock announced that it will telecast a live debate April 23 among the three candidates for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate.
The hour-long debate will start at 7 p.m. and will include responses to questions asked by a panel. The event will originate in the theater at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and will be moderated by news anchorman Scott Inman. Some other stations may also carry the telecast.
The candidates are Sen. Blanche Lincoln of Little Rock, Lt. Gov. Bill Halter of North Little Rock and businessman D.C. Morrison of Little Rock.
KEET POLL
The Jim Keet for Governor campaign released a statewide survey that it said illustrates that Beebe, a Democrat, is vulnerable to Keet, a Republican, despite Beebe’s high approval ratings.
Conducted by Dresner, Wickers & Associates LLC of San Francisco, the survey of Arkansans registered and considered likely to vote in the November general election “clearly demonstrates that Jim Keet can win,” said Bob Wickers, principal of the firm.
According to Keet’s Web site, the poll shows Keet with 38 percent of voters compared with 41 percent for Beebe after “testing positive statements” about Keet’s personal attributes, record and policy agenda. The poll also is quoted as saying Keet leads Beebe 42 percent to 36 percent after “introduction and testing” of Beebe’s record.
Keet said Arkansans are “frustrated with our high unemployment rate, unfair tax structure and waste in government” and “angry about the intrusion of government into our daily lives, as is evidenced by the recent [federal] Health Care Reform law.”
The telephone survey of 400 registered voters statewide was done March 1-18 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.
Keet is a Little Rock businessman and a former state legislator. Beebe is a lawyer, former state senator and former attorney general whose favorable rating has been around 70 percent in most surveys over the past year.
Arkansas, Pages 14 on 04/09/2010