http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-guerriero15sep15,1,1715812.storyGOP Gay Group Has a Word for Bush: No By Patrick Guerriero, Patrick Guerriero is executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans.
Log Cabin Republicans have worked for almost three decades to build a stronger GOP that welcomes gay and lesbian Americans. Since 1993, when we opened our national office, we've endorsed both GOP candidates for president. But this year, despite our loyalty to the party of Ronald Reagan and Abraham Lincoln, we have decided, after significant discussion, to withhold our endorsement of President Bush. It was a difficult choice, but our integrity requires it, and the Republican Party's future will be stronger because of it.
We continue to stand for fundamental Republican positions: low taxes, limited government and winning the war on terrorism. That's why we're Republicans. But we cannot stand idly by while some in the GOP use fear and intolerance to divide the United States in a culture war. Though such tactics may provide short-term political gain, they will put the Republican Party on the wrong side of history.
The Republican Party has a choice: It can be the party of Rudy Giuliani and Arnold Schwarzenegger or it can be the party of Alan Keyes and Rick Santorum.
Some will accuse us of being disloyal. However, it was actually the White House that has been disloyal to the 1 million gay and lesbian Americans who voted for Bush in 2000, including more than 50,000 in Florida alone (where he won by only a few hundred votes). The White House is pursuing a reelection strategy geared to the radical right, using gay and lesbian families as a political wedge issue. That is unacceptable.