John McCain is So Gay
It's no surprise that retired Representative Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) was not asked to address the Republican convention. But, if John McCain is successful in reforming the Republican Party, he might very well get his chance in 2012.You see, McCain likes Jim Kolbe—the only openly gay Republican congressman in the history of the Republic, and McCain was the first public official he came out to, when he learned he was about to be outed by the media.
Kolbe
recently spoke about the incident:"'Jim, it doesn't make any difference' -- "McCain said, 'You're a great legislator today and you will be tomorrow. You're a friend today, and you will be tomorrow.' That really touched me and gave me encouragement to talk to other members of Congress."
The friendship continued and the representative from Tuscon continued to work with McCain on such things as the McCain-Kolbe Act—the bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform effort.
This is not to suggest that McCain is a great promoter of gay rights. But he also does not have a taste for gay baiting and bashing like so much of his party. Can you imagine candidate George Bush chatting with Ellen DeGeneres?
McCain doesn't think orientation defines the guy or the girl. For me, that is by far the most important issue.Indeed, Jim Kolbe says that McCain has repeatedly told him that he is open to repeal of “Don't Ask Don't Tell”.
McCain has the same problem with the Morally Righteous, as Barack Obama has with Big Labor—they have to play footsie with them, or it is a no go.
Though McCain is making some tentative moves in a libertarian direction, he does not have the political strength to take on the muscular bigotry of today's Republican Party as did the man who preceded him in his Senate seat---Barry Goldwater—the 1964 GOP presidential nominee.Goldwater is the man whose name the conservatives attempted to remove from a terminal at Phoenix's Sky Harbor Airport, and the Arizona Republican headquarters building. This was because it turned out he was, heaven forbid, in favor of treating gay folks as full fledged first class citizens.
And then he kept commenting how Jerry Falwell and the Morally Righteous were destroying, not only the Republican Party, but the nation:"I am a conservative Republican, but I believe in democracy and the separation of church and state. The conservative movement is founded on the simple tenet that people have the right to live life as they please as long as they don't hurt anyone else in the process." Besides, "every good Christian should line up and kick Jerry Falwell's ass."
But there is no way that the man known as Mr. Conservative, and the father of modern conservatism could get nominated by today's Republican Party. It is even questionable whether they would nominate Ronald Reagan, who did not regularly attend church and consorted with known Hollywood homos.This is one of the reasons the choice of Sarah Palin was so brilliant.
It frees McCain from any need to pander to the social conservatives. They were ecstatic over the pick because she is a member of a pentecostal church—even though her public record is technically 100% queer friendly—when the issue came up she vetoed discrimination, and has made no attempt to put any of the Morally Righteous precepts into law—and no one has been able to find any homophobic remark which can be attributed to her.But what is really miraculous is that Governor Palin , based on what she has said in the past, and her record, also impresses a lot of libertarian types, who want nothing to do with the Bible Bangers.
Anyway this has made McCain so tight with the most offensive wing of his party that not only can he be more himself, but also reach out to the less insane segments of the electorate.
Last year, to keep the fundies happy---McCain felt obliged to attend the Values Voter Summit for some old time gay bashing and down home racism.This year neither McCain nor Palin are gonna show up.
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