Dan Savage: Here's How The GOP Picks Up Gay Voters

[Newsjock]

Source: The Stranger

No, not in airport restroom stalls.

Like this: No one seriously believes that the GOP is going to back full civil equality for gays and lesbians in this century—not so long as douchebags like these are part of the GOP base—but the GOP could pick up a significant number of gay votes.

There are a lot of conservative gays and lesbians out there who vote for Democrats because they fear the GOP's anti-gay agenda, are insulted by the GOP's anti-gay rhetoric, and have had it with the GOP's gay-bashing pols. Say the GOP went to gay voters and promised to do no harm—no FMA, no more culture war nonsense, no efforts to block gay people from becoming parents—while at the same time pointing out that the Dems haven't done much good.

... Some gays and lesbians—the selfish and deluded ones who don't see the bright and shining link between reproductive rights and gay rights, and who can't see that the GOP's divisive attacks on the "other" are an outrage even when the GOP moves on to attacking other others (gays in 2004, immigrants and Muslims in 2010)—might be taken in by the slogan, "GOP: No harm. Democrats: No good."

Read more: http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2010/09/02/heres-how-republicans-pick-up-gay-voters

[Parche]

1. gay republican=oxymoron

:hi:

[donheld]

16. +1

:hi:

[gratuitous]

2. "Say the GOP . . . promised to do no harm"

While we're at it, I believe I'll fly to the moon by flapping my arms. I like Dan Savage, but if he's going to posit something as preposterous as that, he should at least stand up so the monkeys that are as likely to fly out of his ass have a clear path.

[dembotoz]

3. our record is not good here

we take groups for granted until the go away.

We hear from time to time that the tea partiers are more libertarian than social conservative.
A libertarian approach might have some appeal over the broken promises of this administration

[terrya]

15. No, it's not.

We want our equality. We want the right to marriage and to have those marriages legally recognized. We want the right to be able to serve, for our country in the military...openly. As 25 other countries allow their gay and lesbian citizens to serve openly in their militaries. We want the right not to be discriminated against in employment.

Excuse me, but these are not unreasonable demands. We want to be full class citizens in our country.

And no, the record of the Democratic Party isn't good here. A few sub-Cabinet appointments, while good, will not get us any closer to that equality. We need a Democratic Party, the political party we have generously donated to with our votes and our money, to agressively work for that equality. To work for one of their most reliable voting blocs. And again, no, their record isn't good.

[NeedleCast]

4. "There are a lot of conservative gays and lesbians out there "

No...there aren't.

[Hello_Kitty]

5. They risk losing the fundies with that.

Despite all the attention this so-called teabag movement is getting with it's supposed focus on economic rather than social issues they haven't gone away.

[TheMightyFavog]

9. However, it would be in the GOP's best interest, long term to throw the fundies under the bus.

Polling data shows that the vast majority of young people of today tend to not have that much problem with the GLBT community and favor gay rights.

I think the GOP wants to be a viable political party twenty-five years down the line, they have to muster the courage to embrace gay rights, and to hell with the fundies. Sort of like what we did with the Southern Segregationists back in the mid 60s. Yes it hurt for a bit, but long term, it was the right thing to do.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

10. When has the GOP EVER acted in its best interests

let alone the best interests of the citizens of this country??? :shrug: If they really cared about their long-term political viability, well, they're quickly killing it- they're alienating Hispanics with the Arizona Immigration Law (and introducing similar measures all around the country) and Muslim-Americans with the Cordoba Community Center project in New York, and the "teabaggers" are making the upcoming midterms more difficult for them (they've already lost at least one special election because of them too). The South is pretty much the only area of the country that, demographically, culturally, and politically favors them currently.

[TheMightyFavog]

12. Hey, if they want to join the fundies on the ash-heap of histoery, they're welcome to it.

Hell, I'll bring brats and beer.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

13. I'll bring the whips......er.....I mean chips!

:evilgrin:

[bluestateguy]

6. One thing I notice about all of these pro-gay marriage Republicans

None of them are actual present-day elected officials. They are all political consultants, retired politicians or bureaucrats. In other words, the they don't have to face GOP primary voters.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

11. Exactly

While it's great that some Republicans are seeing the light when it comes to LGBT equality, it will be much more meaningful once we get some elected Republican officials actually facing down the fundies and advocating for LGBT equality.

[rucky]

7. They'd never do it.

Why would they risk losing rabid support from hatefundies to gain tepid support from an unmeasured group of conservative-leaning GLBT?

[Radical Activist]

8. If a gay person wants to help persecute the next minority group the GOP scapegoats

then becoming Republican makes sense. But, I trust that the vast majority of GLBT voters won't play that game.

[VMI Dem]

14. The Democrat that hates you is always better than the Republican that hates you.

[davidinalameda]

17. the Democrats haven't done much good

up until now, the republicans have done worse