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Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia made a point of emphasizing during the Bush v. Gore arguments in December 2000 that there is no federal constitutional guarantee of a right to vote for president. He was right about that. Indeed, as the reform group FairVote reminds us: “Because there is no right to vote in the U.S. Constitution, individual states set their own electoral policies and procedures. This leads to confusing and sometimes contradictory policies regarding ballot design, polling hours, voting equipment, voter registration requirements, and ex-felon voting rights.

U.S. Reps. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) and Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) announced Monday legislation to amend the U.S. Constitution to guarantee the right to vote.

"The right to vote is too important to be left unprotected," Pocan said in a statement. "At a time when there are far too many efforts to disenfranchise Americans, a voting rights amendment would positively affirm our founding principle that our country is at its strongest when everyone participates."

Openly gay U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan’s husband has received an ID issued only to the spouses of federal lawmakers. It is the first time the House has recognized the same-sex husband of a member with the House Spouse ID.

“We’re very happy that my husband Phil (Frank) was able to get a House Spouse ID,” said Pocan, a Democrat from Madison.

For apparently the first time ever in the history of the U.S. House, a gay member of Congress has obtained a congressional ID card identifying his same-sex partner as a spouse.

Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) told the Washington Blade on Thursday the House Sergeant at Arms informed him late last month that Philip Frank, whom Pocan legally married in Canada in 2006, would be able to obtain an ID labeling him as congressional spouse. Previously, Frank was given an ID identifying him as a “designee,” but picked up his new ID on April 26.