Just Keep the Gays Out of the Room - That appears to have been the strategy behind the successful passage of HB1016 - which permits DP health benefits in Virginia for the first time - according to this WashBlade report. Said the bill's sponsor, a Republican from Fairfax:

We were able to push this through because the gay community kept a very low profile and let us keep the focus on business recruitment. There wasn’t a single gay person who testified in front of the committee. They stood in the hall outside of the committee room and waited for the outcome.

As offensive as that sounds, I'm practical enough to applaud whatever works. Tactics need to be crafted to suit the political environment, and pride doesn't buy you a whole lot of health insurance.