On the House floor right now. CSPAN.

Same sex partners get hospital visitation rights, as long as the hospital participates in Medicare or Medicaid, via a White House Memorandum. This isn't specifically aimed at gays, it just allows patients to designate who their visitors may be, regardless of color, gender identity (note how broad this is), race, disability etc. The memo also stipulates that patients have the right to designate who will be empowered to make medical decisions for them, regardless of sex/race/gender identity etc.

The US Armed Services Committee is holding hearings on repealing Don't Ak, Don't Tell for the military. Live stream here.

In Washington D.C., the City Council has voted to approve same-sex marriages in the district. It'll have to go for another vote, then the city's Mayor, who has said he'll approve. After that, the United States Congress has 30 days to review and potentially deny the law, due to the pesky way the district is ruled.

Meanwhile, via Metafilter, comes news that New York state is set to make gay marriage legal within a week or so. Talk about under the radar.

Yesterday, the U.S. Senate voted, 68-29, to expand the federal hate crimes law to include not only race, religion, ethnicity, nationality, but also gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability. The House had already approved so the bill is headed to the President, who is expected to sign it.

The law was expanded by the Matt Shepard Act, which was attached to the 2010 Defense appropriations bill. By attaching the act to a crucial spending bill when Democrats dominated the House, Senate and Presidency, it was virtually assured to pass and be enacted, after years of failing to be passed as separate bill.

Congressional hearings about repealing the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy are supposedly set to take place this fall, according to Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. It'll be interesting to see how President Obama reacts.

It's a simple, but excellent question: Why Does Obama Keep Flip-Flopping on Gay Marriage?

In California, pro-gray marriage groups are differing on when to challenge Prop 8, passed by ballot proposition, 52% to 48%, in the 2008 election. It explicitly defines marriage as between a man and woman, living homosexuals and lesbians unable to marry within the state.

Equality California is shooting for 2012, reasoning it'll allow more time to convince opponents, while letting younger and more gay friendly voters come of voting age. The Courage Campaign sees a viable fight for 2010, siting good fund-raising and residual anger over the 2008 decision.

As New Hampshire becomes the 6th state to legalize same-sex marriage and Nevada's legislature overrides the governor's veto to enact domestic partnerships for gay and straight, tension is growing between the gay rights movement and the Obama administration.

In Washington DC, the recent City Council vote to legalize gay marriage pointed out fissures between gay rights and black communities.

When the District of Columbia city council voted 12-1 recently to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions, a raucous protest led by African-American ministers erupted in the hallway outside council chambers.

Security officers quelled the pandemonium, but not before video and cell phone cameras captured images of the confrontation — with councilman Marion Barry, who cast the lone dissenting vote, predicting "civil war" over the issue in the D.C. black community.

Things aren't going to get much better, as a group ministers, Stand 4 Marriage, have begun the process of putting the issue before voters in a referendum.

The California Supreme Court has announced that it will issue an opinion in three cases challenging the constitutionality of Proposition 8 at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, May 26, 2009.    Continues...

The Vermont House voted 95-52 on Thursday night to allow same-sex couples to marry in Vermont. However, Governor Jim Douglas has promised to veto any such bill that comes to him.

The California Senate and Assembly passed resolutions opposing Proposition 8, saying the measures needed to be approved by the legislature before voters were allowed to vote on them.

The State Supreme Courts will hear arguments arguing the constitutionality of Prop 8 on Thursday, March 5th and the hearing will be broadcast live.

To some, it's painful to realize that Rick Warren and Barack Obama agree on gay marriage and to know that Warren will be giving the invocation at Obama's inauguration. There's really no other way to put it or even tip toe around that. The inclusion of Warren, not only at the beginning, not only on stage, but with a actual part to play in the christening of the candidate who's campaign motto was "Change we can believe in" is disheartening, particularly on the heels of the defeat of Prop 8, which Warren so vocally supported.

Such is the nature of compromise.