Gay Man Planned Chelsea Clinton's Wedding

Former President Bill Clinton may have thought that gays don't deserve federal marriage recognition of their own, but he had no problem signing a gay man on to plan his daughter's July 31 wedding.

That's the news from Towleroad, which on Aug. 2 posted news of the hiring of Bryan Rafanelli, an openly gay event planner reportedly hired by the Clintons to put together the event.

Bill Clinton signed the so-called "Defense of Marriage" Act (DOMA) in 1996, which denies any federal recognition to same-sex families. The law also attempts to give states the right to ignore marriages granted to same-sex couples in other jurisdictions, despite the Constitution's "full faith and credit" clause, which requires that contracts made in one state are recognized in all the other states. A recent court case in Massachusetts found that DOMA is unconstitutional.

"This court has determined that it is clearly within the authority of the Commonwealth to recognize same-sex marriages among its residents, and to afford those individuals in same-sex marriages any benefits, rights, and privileges to which they are entitled by virtue of their marital status," federal district court judge Joseph L. Tauro wrote in his July 8 ruling. "The federal government, by enacting and enforcing DOMA, plainly encroaches upon the firmly entrenched province of the state."

Rafanelli was reported as the Clintons' pick in a Boston Globe article from July 28. The Globe said that the wedding's cost was an estimated $2 million. Chelsea Clinton wed Marc Mezvinsky, an investment banker, in a ceremony in Rhinebeck, New York. Chelsea wore a dress by Vera Wang.

Advocate.com noted in an Aug. 2 story that Rafanelli had organized events for the Clintons on previous occasions, including events in 2004 and 2008, both election years.