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for Protecting Gay Workers Gov. Tom Vilsack Gets Attacked for Exceeding His Authority GOP Politicians Resent First Democratic Leader in 3 Decades |
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Compiled By GayToday
The GOP lawsuit was filed in Polk County District Court on Tuesday and reflects the ideological antagonism Republican lawmakers feel for Vilsack, the state's first Democratic governor in three decades. Earlier, during the legislative session, the governor had quickly vetoed a Republican attempt to overturn his gay civil-rights order. Mark McCormick, a Des Moines lawyer who lost the 1998 Democratic Gubernatorial primary to Gov. Vilsack has agreed to handle the Republican lawmakers' case against his former political rival.
Vilsack, a trial lawyer, has believed all along that he rightfully and legally used his authority to improve hiring policies for employees of the state's executive branch. The lawsuit will be defended by lawyers from the governor's office or from the attorney general's office. Referring to his executive order prohibiting anti-gay employment bias, Governor Vilsack told reporters: "I thought this was the right thing for us to do in terms of fundamental fairness and not discriminating, You don't think about whether things will end up in court." |
