Just As I Suspected...

I wrote on Friday that I thought it was likely that the Obama administration would move quietly to extend more rights and benefits to the partners of gay and lesbian federal employees, rather than making a public splash. And on Saturday, the New York Times reported that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton did just that, sending a memo outlining policy changes she intends to make to treat the domestic partners of diplomats overseas the same as husbands and wives of heterosexual diplomats, giving them access to diplomatic passports, medical facilities at diplomatic posts, rights to emergency evacuation, and access to a range of training. The State Department didn't confirm the changes to the Times, and the story sunk swiftly off the front page. I'm not surprised, and I'd guess this will be the way things continue to go.