Teresa Heinz Kerry woos gays – ‘You will have a mom in White House’

[kskiska]

BOSTON — Teresa Heinz Kerry, wife of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, drew tumultuous applause from a gathering of more than 200 gay delegates and their supporters Wednesday when she addressed a meeting of the Democratic National Convention’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender caucus.

(snip)

“You are in a sense pushing the envelope,” she said. “We have to respond with policies that reflect the capacity and the tolerance of all Americans,” she added, possibly referring to her husband’s position of support for civil unions rather than gay marriage.

“But,” she continued, “because things are difficult doesn’t mean they won’t happen.”

(snip)

She told of how she was moved at a campaign appearance a few months ago in Washington state, when a man told her in a question and answer session that his relationship with his mother was strained and told her, “I want you to be my mother.”

“It was clear that he had not made that peace with his mother and he wanted someone who loved him,” Heinz Kerry said. “And so, at least, if nothing else, you’ll have a mom in the White House,” she told the crowd.

Added Heinz Kerry, “You can call me Mama T.”

more…
http://www.washblade.com/2004/7-30/news/national/mothert.cfm

[JohnKleeb]

1. Mama T heh

She'll make a great first lady, she's personable, loyal, funny, couragous, smart.

[Born Free]

36. We are going to win this time....

America is going to love these people in charge and the rest of the world will be glad to have "Real Americans with Real American Values" to work with in ohter areas of the world. However, democrats must stick together, all the way to the polls.

[DemWitch]

2. there's a new campaign sign...

Mama T :)

[DivinBreuvage]

3. So sickening, why can't she be CLASSY like Laura or Barbara B?

This is MAJOR SARCASM, don't flame me.

[CBHagman]

57. Dear Freedomfrog, thank you.

Even though you and I didn't get the memo, Teresa-bashing season has begun in earnest, with unpleasant people far and wide sniping at everything from the lady's outspokenness to the way she pronounces her name.

For example, The Washington Post is is full-scale cattiness, quoting liberally from the usual suspects (i.e., David Frum, Morton Kondracke et al) who whine that Pickles is so much more pleasing than Mama T. I was reading an article by two pollsters last night. In mid-article, they opined that "everybody loves Laura Bush, a former librarian who dresses sensibly," but that Teresa Heinz Kerry might be "too cosmopolitan" for the American people. Oh, I see; we're a bunch of jingoist, unsophisticated slobs here in the U.S. of A. Oh, THANK YOU, pollsters. :puke:

Long liva Mama T!

[The empressof all]

4. OK I am a straight middle aged woman

and this made me cry. Teresa speaks volumes to me about the kind of man she married. She touches me. I was absolutely livid when those stupid male pundits kept saying that middle aged women would not relate to her.

[madrchsod]

10. never thought of it that way

well i guess i don`t think like a woman..but your reasoning woke me up..ya she isn`t the kind of woman who would marry anyone but her equal..yes as soon as she hits the airwaves and campaign stops ,ole laura not going to do her man right...plus she dresses a whole lot better than the walking sofa

[countmyvote4real]

17. "the walking sofa" LOL n/t

[bloom]

12. yeah - what do they know

the male pundits, that is.

[AwakeAtLast]

13. Because they know, of course, that

middle aged women cannot think for themselves <sarcasm totally on>.

[tlcandie]

43. Thank you for putting into words what I've been trying to say

regarding her and John. Being able to see her allows me to see John more clearly with trust. With her behind him, he will never get away with doing the wrong thing easily! After listening to his 1971 speech, I believe that is who he is underneath all the political crap that seems to be required in order to run for the office of president and just one of the reasons Teresa fell for him.

:hug:

EDIT: I feel the same about Edwards. I truly believe between the two of them that Kerry will be made to tow the line!

[BuelahWitch]

53. It made me cry too

The more I get to know "Mama T" the more I like her.

[bigwillq]

5. Mama T

is FUCKING AWESOME!

[madrchsod]

6. she will be one of the best first ladies ever

"you can call me Mama T" you can`t get any better than that,now can you.....

[DemoTex]

7. My dear queer brother loves her.

So do I. I also love him and his okra-frying partner. Actually they are fairly famous in Atlanta. Druid Hills Country Club law suit. Need I say more?

[Pachamama]

16. Excellent DemoTex!

I do know the case...:hi:

I love Mama T. too....I by the way was raised by Lesbian Mama's...and guess what - despite what Rick Santorum and the rest of the Fundie's say, my siblings and I all turned out - STRAIGHT ! That's right and we are married with kids! What happened? I thought Gay Marriage was going to destroy the fabric and foundation of our society and families? :think:

[doctorbombeigh]

23. Ruh-roh!

I just read your post and it has destroyed the fabric of my family.

Please send over a bolt of midnight-blue, raw, silk and we'll forget about the whole thing.

[Pachamama]

24. Hi Doc! As a Newbie, let me Welcome You to the DU!

:hi:

Yeah, I know...scary isn't it...Here I am a straight Marin County Mom married and raising her babies ....shouldn't have turned out that way, eh? I mean, according to Rick Santorum and all the Repukes against Gay Marriage and Gay Families, my brother, sister and I should have all turned out Gay and evil and destroying the fabric of American Home life....Well, I guess they would still think so because I'm a liberal....must have been the Gay Mom's fault....but wait - My Dad (my Mom was married to Dad before divorcing and coming out) is a Republican? So, how does that figure in to the picture? Hmmm....I guess he saved me? :think:

:toast: Hope your enjoying our fun free-thinking forum here....I love the DU....

[doctorbombeigh]

29. Well, that Santorum guy.. he's not right in the head

I just think it's funny that every gay person I know has straight parents, but gay parents are a "problem" of some kind. If kids of straight parents are regularly gay, are the kids of gay parents extra gay? Oh. My. God. Just when we got used to metro-sexuals, the extra-gays are coming.

But surely, before we can face the peril of the extra-gays, we need help with the regular gay people. When will Savior Santorum be cracking down on the dangerous menace of straight parents in America? These parents are creating... gay people! I mean really, where's the outrage?

<snickering>


And thanks for the welcome!

[glitch]

59. Thanks for the first LOL of the morning! nt

[geniph]

45. Pachamama, I was also raised by lesbians

and I'm also married to a man. Whaddya know. Although, as I've grown older, I've begun to self-identify as bisexual, so maybe it just took 40+ years for them to "teach me to be gay." :eyes:

[Pachamama]

47. Hi Gen!

Hey, and we are both sailors too! (or Scalawags as I suggested in a post during the convention to you and your honey!):pals:

And I used to live in Seattle when I worked at a lil company in Redmond you might know of....

I hope to meet you one day...I am so psyched for you that you got to go to the Convention as a delegate....I still have a house up in the Seattle area and by Friday Harbor and visit from time to time....maybe we'll have to go sailing sometime....

I used to do open ocean racing (pac cup, transpac and some others) and went cruising for a couple of years....got some good stories...

[geniph]

62. That sounds great to me!

Drop me or JohnYawl a private message sometime when you'll be in town, and we'll arrange to meet! :D

:hi:

[stepnw1f]

56. I Hope My Sister Visits this site

She'll begin to realise that there is large populace that accepts her. I was so happy to hear Mama T!

[TexasProgressive]

20. Yo DemoTex!!!

Hey bud. That's awesome. I had no idea. Why, you're almost famous! But seriously, it's a fine thing that you stand up for those of us that the GOP wants to make second-class citizens.

Great convention, wasn't it?

You won't remember me, but you were one of the first folks on here to greet me when I started posting, which I don't do very often, even though I'm on here every day.

I'm still down here in Dallas. No easy thing to be a liberal gay musician in Dallas.

I hope NC is treating you well. Take good care, my fine Democrat friend.

[formernaderite]

61. So does mine.....

...even before I decided to support Kerry, I liked Theresa. My brother found the meeting she had with GLBT group astounding. Despite the convention, this sort of thing gives me hope.

[Vanje]

8. WoooHoo!

I've been wooed by a beautiful uber-classy lady with a real sexy accent.

MMMmmmmm!

[classof56]

11. Welcome to DU!

Glad to have you aboard. We're on the way and we're all in this together.

Bush Must Go!!!

[mom cat]

40. Welcome aboard to the DU ship. You are so right about Mama T.

Mama T rocks. I agree with John, she has the strongest ethical core of anyone I have ever seen and she can display is as easily with the most brilliant and with a young man she just met who missed out on mothering. She is a natural.

[dsc]

9. That is a sweet story

I have always been impressed with Teresa Heinz and now Teresa Heinz Kerry. I summered in Pittsburg growing up and thus knew of her from papers and TV. She will make a great first lady.

[silverweb]

14. Teresa is wonderful!

I absolutely adore her. She will be a First Lady for the ages... a role model for women of all ages.

[nofurylike]

15. Thank you so much for this wonderful post and link, kskiska!

Mama T Mama T Mama T.....

they were chanting it.

she is more amazing to me every time i hear her speak on any subject!


peace!

[kskiska]

22. This woman will be a Princess Diana

so unlike our current W.H. resident Stepford Wife.

[marlakay]

18. Hey, I'm a middle age woman...

and I like Teresa. I am 48 years old. By the time you get to my age, you have made some mistakes, hopefully learned from them, have raised your kids, I have two wonderful daughters in their twenties, have worked for years, and been married like most of america more than once!

What does that mean? It means we are not stupid, we are not gullible, we don't like being told what to do and we are independent women. And I am not just speaking as a California woman, I have friends my age in states across America! and some of those are Christian friends. underneath the skin of republican, they are the same. The same trials, the same independence, the same kid problems, the same worries about retirement. It goes across party lines. I wish people would see that!!!

Teresa speaks her mind and everywhere I go I hear women saying that they like her, you can tell she is not a bitch behind being blunt. She is very generous. She doesn't act like she has lots of money.

[nofurylike]

19. yes, marlakay! you'll like this quote from the linked article:

“You know what, what we owe one another is the strength, dignity, civil rights and generosity of spirit that one can get the American dream,” she said. “The parents of this country know that … the mothers of this country know that.”

**"the mothers of this country know that.”**

absolutely. as you said, "underneath the skin of republican, they are the same. The same trials, the same independence, the same kid problems, the same worries about retirement. It goes across party lines. I wish people would see that!!!"

THK is going to help people see. because she gets it the way you do.

i love her humility too.


peace!

[marlakay]

21. Thanks for understanding!

I think part of why she gets it is because she used to be republican. I am almost afraid to say on this blog but in my early twenties I was very religious and voted how my church told me to. That is a big part of Bush's base!! And because of my past and I have been a democrat for over 20 years now, I understand them, even the christian brain washed ones. I know how easy it is to get caught up in one issue and not see the rest. That actually has helped me to talk to many republicans that vote for that reason.

[Pachamama]

25. No Need to Apologize to any of us....It's all part of the journey....

...the road to recovery, the road to discovery and to "enlightenment"....

There are many of us who grew up with backgrounds that influenced us one way or the other until we had the ability to break free of that and "see" with our eyes, minds and hearts more clearly and to be inquisitive and seek the truth. While I certainly had an "unconventional" upbringing (Mom divorces Dad, leaves Dad for another Woman, raises us three kids with two Moms) I did eventually as a teenager live with my Dad and he was hard-core Republican....so, I naturally followed what my Dad taught me....It took about 10+ years, but I've come around to the point I'm at now....

[sandnsea]

27. I disagree

I think she gets it from her faith and her own mother. From what I've heard, she's the exact same Teresa she's always been. I have 7 Catholic aunties, all Democrats, exactly like Teresa. I never had that oppressed sense of women so many Catholics experienced. Motherhood is a vocation, just like a nun or a priest. It's to be revered and respected. And just like so many nuns "have something to say", so does Teresa. So did my Catholic aunties and nobody ever stopped them. I think it is in the intepretation of Catholicism you are raised with as well as the opportunities life presents. Teresa brings her sense of value as a mother to everything she does and seems to have gained enormous strength and wisdom from that. That's my take on her anyway.

[Pachamama]

48. I'm a recovering Catholic...maybe that's where I get "it" from?

:hi:

[The Zanti Regent]

26. I love Mamma T too!

My parents disowned me for living with a black woman. My mom went to her grave unforgiving.

Both of us love Momma T. We love that lady with her big heart!

[Laughing Mirror]

28. I guess telling me she's my mother means

I'll just have to keep quiet about demanding full constitutional rights that I'm not getting now.

Well I'm not going to keep quiet, and I don't need some rich woman telling me to wait.

And you are not my Mother Theresa, Theresa!

[WindRavenX]

30. Once Kerry is elected...

...he will be a fantastic leader for gay rights. Hell, has has one of (if not the) highest rating from the HRC. He was one of the few senators to vote against Clinton's (foolish) marriage act. Kerry is an ally to the gay community.
With all due respect, you won't be silenced under the Kerry adminstration.

[Laughing Mirror]

31. He will not be a fantastic leader for gay rights

Because he doesn't believe we should have full rights as citizens. He doesn't believe we should enjoy our constitutional rights. We should not be allowed to get married. We only are worth some kind of trophy civil union status. This is hardly whaty I would call a fantastic leader for gay rights. A leader for gay rights would give me 100% equality with straights.

But you are right. I will not be silenced under the Kerry administration, or any administration.

[mitchtv]

32. Sorry he isn't perfect, But he voted against DOMA

good enough for me. Boxer changed her tune, he will too, once he's elected. He has made commitments to us, full rights. Give the guy a break.

[Laughing Mirror]

35. When and where has he made "full rights" commitments to us?

He says civil unions and it's up to the states. That's not full rights.

[mitchtv]

37. tho, I can't "prove it" with a link

It was reported that he did so on a campaign speech in SF,before the Ca primary. Maybe some one else can be more specific.

[geniph]

46. If you feel you'll get better support from Bu$h,

be my guest. Myself, as a member of the LGBT community, I'm 100% behind Kerry.

[Moonbeam_Starlight]

55. C'mon

give him a chance, let's get the guy elected then start working on him! (evil grin)

I am a straight female who fights for full GLBT rights in this society. I want to see it happen and I want to see it happen SOON, no more lip service.

But it sure as hell isn't going to happen under bush, so I'm working hard to get Kerry elected THEN I'll start working on him.

We're bound to make more progress under Kerry.

[WindRavenX]

34. I think you're not giving Kerry enough credit, IMO

Kerry's voting record speaks for itself, and that his record shows him as an ally to the gay rights cause.
He isn't perfect, but he's by far better than Clinton and certainly better than W.

[Paschall]

38. Check it out.

Kerry does support full equal rights, he just doesn't call it "marriage." (Hey, that's better than the French civil union, the PACS.)

Human Rights Campaign - Kerry responds to HRC questionnaire

And, yes, Kerry has had a perfect 100% Congressional scorecard from the HRC for the last four Congresses. He co-sponsored gay rights legislation in Congress 20 years ago.

The marriage debate is not as cut and dry as it seems. The federal government does not have Constitutional authority over marriage law.

[Laughing Mirror]

39. Paschall your link is not working

And there is no cut and dried about it. We have been over this before. The Constitution guarantees me my rights as a citizen, and that includes the same rights as straight people. John Kerry has not promised me those rights.

[Paschall]

50. Here's the link

http://www.hrc.org/Content/NavigationMenu/HRC/Get_Informed/Campaigns_and_Elections/Presidential_Candidates/Questionnaire_Responses/2004_Presidential_Questionnaire_Responses.htm

Kerry advocates full equal rights, as I said, without the moniker "marriage." That's all.

[Laughing Mirror]

54. Sorry, civil unions, leaving it up to the states, etc., etc.

That's not marriage, that's not full equal rights, and you know that it is not so quit pretending that it is.

You live in France. If you and your husband decide you want to move the US and live as a husband and wife, you can. I live in France. If I and my husband decide we want to move to the US and live as husband and husband, we can't. That's why Mr. and Mrs. Kerry's lip service is falling on my deaf ears.

[Paschall]

66. Downstairsparts, did you read this?

From Kerry's responses to the HRC questionnaire:

9. Would you support the Permanent Partners Immigration Act (H.R. 832) which would enable an American citizen to petition for immigration sponsorship for a same-sex partner, and the INS would treat the relationships between opposite and same-sex couples in the same manner under the immigration code?

KERRY: SUPPORT.

----

P.S. Maybe you don't remember me; I live in a two husband household, too, and Kerry's position suits me just fine... as I said, he's proposing a better deal than the French PACS civil union.

[0007]

33. I love it!

Send flowers to the freepers. The bastards are ready to explode I bet! Behind in the polls and now this. I love it!

[bitchkitty]

41. Mama T!

I like this woman. I was very impressed with her at the convention, and she won my heart when she told that asshole reporter to "shove it".

I cannot believe that she is 65. I'm 15 years younger, and look five years older than her!

[Voltaire99]

42. What about us straight guys who want some of that lovin'?

I admit it: Theresa is my Ingrid Bergman fantasy come to life. That sonorous accent. A rich spirit and mind. Those big warm eyes. That sensuous mouth.

Hope that lap is big enough for more, baby, 'cuz Voltaire wants his mommy! ;-)

[Pachamama]

65. I wish Mama T could see these posts...she should know how beloved

..she is...the bummer is now we are stuck w/ Stepford Mom....

[geniph]

44. I was at that LGBT caucus when she spoke

and the reporter did not get the full quote, which brought the entire (packed) roomful of people to tears:

"...you will always have a mom in the White House, who will always love you and respect you for who you are, just as you are."

It's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard in my life. Days later, and I still cannot tell that story to others without bawling like a baby. Mama T, I love you.

[Joe the Revelator]

52. that is amazingly beautiful....

I'm straight and it brought me to tears. Just such a difference from the hate and bigotry of the last four years.

[AspenRose]

49. "Mama T" is better than "Mother Teresa"

What a sweet lady.

[Tight_rope]

51. Mama T.

[RFKHumphreyObama]

58. What a compassionate and beautiful (physically and spiritually) woman

THK is. I would consider beyond a shadow of a doubt that THK will be a marvelous and wonderful First Lady -one of the best America has had. And she puts the vacuous and insipid Laura Bush to shame with her elegance, charm and compassion

[fortyfeetunder]

60. Compare Mama T to Lynne Cheney

Lynne HAS a gay daughter and has been silent on this issue. Shame on her.

[Ivar]

63. I pity the fool!!!

wait... that was MR T...

[Waverley_Hills_Hiker]

64. huh?

The first lady as fag hag?