U.S. Rep. Hanna (R-NY) Takes Pro-LGBT Positions

Richard Hanna is a Republican congressman from upstate New York, currently representing the 24th Congressional District (but will represent the 22nd District staring January 3, 2013 due to redistricting).
There are very few moderates in the House Republican caucus but Hanna can probably be considered one of them, since he "only" votes with the rest of the caucus less than 90% of the time.

Anyway, Hanna is making news this week for his announcement of pro-LGBT positions. He has signed off as a co-sponsor of the Uniting All Families Act, which would end discrimination in immigration laws against same-sex bi-national couples as well as the Respect for Marriage Act (RFMA), which would repeal DOMA.

The Advocate has the details of Hanna's announcement:

“New York State allows all its citizens the freedom to marry the person they love,” he said. “Under the Tenth Amendment, the federal government has a Constitutional responsibility to respect New York’s right to set its own laws. It’s my job to see that it does. 

“It is right to extend equal protection under federal law to all couples who are legally married without infringing upon religious freedom and beliefs,” Hanna continued. “This legislation does not tell states who can be married or who must be treated as married, nor does it require any religious institution to violate their own convictions. 

“I respect the deeply held beliefs on both sides of this issue,” he said. “The simple fact remains that the federal government has a responsibility to ensure all legally married couples are treated equally under federal law – and this bill would achieve that proper standard.”

In addition to supporting DOMA repeal, Hanna joined fellow Republican U.S. Representative Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania have signed on to the Uniting American Families Act, Immigration Equality announced earlier this month.

Hat/tip to LGBT Think Progress