Just reported by the Times Argus.com:

MONTPELIER [VT] — Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin has decided not to go to a large Democratic National Committee fundraiser next week to protest a U.S. Justice Department memo related to gay marriage.

“One thing I have learned dealing with marriage equality in Vermont is that we all have a responsibility to stand up for the civil rights of all Americans,” Shumlin said Wednesday.

“This memo from the Justice Department is more Bush than Bush,” he added. “It takes the only minority group left in America that national politicians can publicly discriminate against and still see their numbers go up in the polls and it reinforces the horrible stereotypes about our friends and neighbors.”

Shumlin was to be one of the guests at the event, along with Vice President Joe Biden, former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean and others. The fundraiser at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington D.C. — with ticket prices ranging from $1,000 to $30,000 — is aimed at drawing money from lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender supporters.

More at Times Argus

Can I just say I like this guy?