NOM photo scandal heating up

Brian Brown, NOM's president

The National Organization for Marriage has YET to comment on getting caught stealing photos from Obama rallies to misrepresent its number of supporters, but others are commenting.

Today, the Human Rights Campaign made a statement:

HRC to NOM: Fess Up About Stolen Photo

Anti-​LGBT organization manipulates crowd photo to create illusion of support

WASHINGTON – Today Joe Solmonese, the president of the Human Rights Campaign – the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization – sent a letter to the so-​called National Organization for Marriage (NOM) calling out the group’s deceitful tactics in New Hampshire. NOM is using a photograph from an Obama campaign event in Ohio to mislead New Hampshire voters into believing they have more supporters than they actually do. The news was broken by Jeremy Hooper on his Good as You blog; Hooper is also a contributor to HRC’s NOM Exposed.

The photo debacle comes on the heels of news from the nonpartisan University of New Hampshire Survey Center who recently released a poll showing 62% of Granite Staters oppose repealing the popular same-​sex marriage law.

Read Solmonese’s letter to NOM President Brian Brown below:

Dear Mr. Brown:

Your organization has sunk to a new level of deception by manipulating photographs from an Obama campaign event in Ohio to trick Granite Staters into believing support for the National Organization for Marriage is much greater than it really is. And while I know that NOM has never been above misleading the public to further its cause, this new phoniness is an example of just how far you will go to make people believe your pursuit – the denial of equal treatment under the law — is supported by New Hampshire voters and Americans in general. 

There’s no mistaking the facts: 62 percent of Granite Staters oppose repealing marriage equality. In addition, polls reflect that a majority of Americans support marriage equality nationwide. And it’s no secret that support is growing as Americans from all walks of life come to the understanding that all that gay and lesbian families seek is to have our love and commitment recognized and legally protected. Yet NOM futilely and painstakingly attempts to convince otherwise. 

The fact that you had to “steal a crowd” from someone else’s event to create the illusion that people support your cause is evidence that you and your cohorts are truly scraping the bottom of the barrel.  Americans want the truth. And the truth is voters in New Hampshire want the legislature to leave the popular marriage law alone and focus on the economy and budget matters.

Sincerely,

Joe Solmonese

Meanwhile Clarknt67, a blogger at Daily Kos, has come out with a list detailing the fact that photos aren't the only items NOM has pilfered:

Gosh for such God-fearing Christian people, those folks over at National Organization for Marriage sure seem to have a problem following the 8th Commandment.

They stole music from John Mellencamp music.

They stole video from a gay blogger.

They stole an image from Reuters earlier this week.

Seems they need to go back to Sunday School, before the Baby Jesus cries.

Let's refresh the Exodus 20:15 for them, shall we?

If NOM comments on this, I will be surprised. No doubt, they are hoping that this controversy will die out.

But it shouldn't. Not if we have anything to say about it.