Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 3, 2004)
nTiTiTTTnrnnnews Q uick E xit AMERICAN EXPRESS FINANCIAL ADVISORS * T. !S , 3 Executive director leaves Human Rights Campaign by Bob Roehr Longtime relationship recognized. Long-term planning required. ; 1 5- $ "3 X ' W - 5 ; 2 < C Cheryl Jacques: Gone in 60 seconds until a new executive director is in place. Michael Berman is president of the Duberstein Group, a Washington lobbying firm. Hillary Rosen is the former head of the Recording Industry Association of America. She was a consultant to HRC on the Federal Marriage Amendment and is the spouse of former HRC executive director Elizabeth Birch. Jacques, 42, resigned from the Massachusetts Senate to join HRC. She had never lived out side the Boston area, had been publicly out for only 3 1/2 years, had not worked extensively within the gay community and did not have experience working at the national level. The search committee did not believe those would he significant impediments when they hired her. However, they did prove to con tribute to her limited effectiveness on the job. One Capitol Hill lobbyist was appalled to learn in a conversation with Jacques, after three to four months on the job, that she did not know that U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., was the lead Republican sponsor of the Employ ment Nondiscrimination Act, the crown jewel in H RC’s legislative agenda. HRC later endorsed Specter’s Democratic opponent in the general election, even though he was a huge underdog in that race. Philadel phia Gay News publisher Mark Segal, active in Democratic politics in Pennsylvania for decades, said H RC would have been “smart” to either not endorse in the race or to have issued a dual endorsement. Specter won convincingly and is slated to chair the Judiciary Committee, which has juris diction over much of the legislation important to HRC. The lobbyist said that as a result of such mis steps, several Republican Senate offices former ly friendly to H RC have become decidedly icy. The departure of longtime senior employees was a major source of unhappiness for several HRC hoard members. Among those leaving were Kim Mills, who headed up workplace and education activities, and Harvey Hurdle, the chief financial officer. Other senior employees have expressed their unhappiness with Jacques and were contemplating leaving. “I’m rejoicing. She was totally clueless. She was in so far over her head,” Michael Bauer said in response to the news of Jacques’ departure. He is a gay Democratic political consultant and fund-raiser in Chicago. He served on the board of the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, which supports openly gay candidates for office. Carl Schmid, former head of the Washing ton, D.C., chapter of Log Cabin Republicans and a former H RC advisory committee mem ber, criticized the partisan tone that H RC took during the last election cycle. He said, “The slo gan ‘George W. Bush, you’re fired’ made it diffi cult for some Republicans to support HRC. It doesn’t do anything to educate Americans about same-sex marriage.” The H RC boards are scheduled to meet in Las Vegas during the weekend of Dec. 4, with hiring a new executive director sure to top their agenda. One option is to return to the applicant ptxd from a year ago. Winnie Stachelberg, H RC’s longtime political director, was among the three finalists. She is highly respected for her political acumen and lobbying talents. However, the skills that work best inside the Beltway may not he the same ones that work best outside the Beltway. The executive direc tor plays a leading role in raising money, public speaking and articulating a vision before the gay and mainstream communities. Some have made the comparison with John Kerry, whose skills made him an excellent policy wonk but a less effective campaigner. “I’m a passionate Derruxirat,” said Bauer, “but in case anyfxxJy hasn’t noticed, we lost. This is a time to be embracing Republicans.” He thought it would be “a really smart move” for HRC to hire a Republican, or at least someone who can talk to Republicans. “As much as I don’t like the Bush administration, they are going to be there for four years, and we need to find someone who can play with the current administration.” Bauer dismissed the possibility that HRC might hire recently out and recently resigned New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey. “We can’t hire anyone with an ethical c I chk I over their head,” as McGreevey does with putting his boyfriend on the state payroll. And there has to be some histo ry of involvement in the community. J H For a complimentary initial consultation call me today at 503.924.1990. rii heryl Jacques is stepping down as president o f the Human Rights Campaign after less than a year on the job. Announcement of Jacques’ resignation, over “differences in management philosophy” between her and the H RC governing boards, came'in a statement released by the organiza tion late Nov. 30. The initiative for change appears to have come from the hoards. “It just didn’t work out,” said Vic Basile, a former executive director of HRC who co chaired the search committee that hired Jacques. “Cheryl has a lot of strengths and she’s a g(xxl person, hut on balance, it wasn’t work ing for her and it wasn’t working for us. This was a good time to resolve it, in the lull between the election and when the new C on gress comes in.” Jacques cited defeat of the Federal Marriage Amendment and increasing the H RC budget to $30 million and membership to 600,000 as among her accomplishments. All parties denied any link to results from the Nov. 2 election. The co-chairs of H RC’s hoard of directors will lead the organization during the transition I » . ■ J - r 3 f. ■ Sc j w • V * = y* i ■ £ >> X A ' American Express Financial C - u W Advisors understands how > ■5 5 ■ one event can impact your s > -- : g J S ; broader economic picture. % X Ir « V With our unique Personal Eco z 2 z X ~ 2 o nomic Forecast, we can help < you take control of - — X you economy with the right ■è - x X combination of advice, J } if Z CL insight and solutions. As .c a longtime leader in providing ' y p £ § domestic partners with >• x - ■ "'<¡3 > è < financial advice, we X CT cJr = X . understand the unique r - 'N challenges that affect your > economy. < - Tr w < j t 2 a 2 • x 2 1 f c Managing the economy that means most: yours9. Tamar Boussi & Associates 8625 SW Cascade Ave., Suite 100 Beaverton, OR 97008 503.924.1990 tamar.x.boussi@aexp.com ftkANI Make Life Rewarding*. Financial Advisors FINANCIAL PLANNING INVESTMENTS INSURANCE RETIREMENT Y qjj T& ! Job Hotline: 503-988-5035 TTY: 503-988-5170 an equal opportunity employer B ob R oehr is a free-lance reporter based in Washington, D .C . r JZ MULTNOMAH COUNTY www.multcojobs.org ? 5 c .E
