View From the Hill: The Dems

In a letter to the DNC, Bruce Bastian probably said it best: "I will continue to support certain congressmen, congresswomen, and senators whom I believe will continue to fight for our rights, but I don't think blanket donations to the Democratic Party right now are justified…"

So there's our brave new world. Arms folded and casting a dubious look, community members now wait and watch to see if this week's events are a new beginning of mutuality or just a systematic and fleeting response from Democrats. It is, after all, an eerily familiar pattern. During the presidential primary, candidate Obama made himself available to the LGBT press twice -- once after the Donnie McClurkin imbroglio, and again following sustained criticism that he wasn't granting nearly as much LGBT access as Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

The difference now is that a much wider array of people are registering their discontent in unison. Our rights are on the line. After the 2010 midterms, Democratic majorities will almost certainly dwindle. And within the heart of the movement, a palpable sense exists that justice delayed could literally be justice denied.