Romney Wins Maine Caucus

Tiny turnout.

Maine Bishop Launches "Ex-Gay" Group

Conveniently timed to coincide with the renewed marriage equality battle, Maine's Bishop Richard Malone is launching an "ex-gay" group.

Malone announced in a press release the establishment of a local chapter of Courage, a worldwide spiritual support group based in Norwalk, Conn. The Rev. Kevin Martin, who serves St. Michael Parish in Augusta, has been appointed the chaplain for the ministry. “This service is being initiated in response to requests from people who desire the church’s assistance,” Sue Bernard, spokeswoman for the diocese, said in the press release. Courage was founded in 1980 in the Archdiocese of New York. The organization now has has more than 100 chapters and more than 1,500 people on its electronic mailing list worldwide, according to information on its website. The program is patterned after 12-step programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous.

(Tipped by JMG reader Seth)

NOM Loses In Maine AGAIN

NOM has lost yet another court battle to hide its donor list from the state of Maine.

An appeals court on Tuesday upheld the state's campaign disclosure law that requires a national anti-gay-marriage group to release its donor list, but the group plans to take the fight to shield the list to the U.S. Supreme Court. The decision pertains to ballot question committees in Maine and represents a second defeat for the National Organization for Marriage, which previously lost a challenge to the state's political action committee laws and laws governing independent expenditures and advertising attribution and disclaimers. The latest appeal focused on part of the law that says groups that raise or spend more than $5,000 to influence elections must register and disclose their donors.

And while we await that Supreme Court decision, NOM will barrel ahead and pour millions into Maine's November marriage equality ballot measure. If you've got the dough and you've got the lawyers, court rulings don't mean shit.