Over at Malcontent, Robbie reports that Jim Kolbe, the only openly gay Republican in Congress is stepping down.
When I lived in D.C., I knew Jim and socialized with him on occasion. I once even wrote a speech for him on free trade. Jim is a good man and a loyal Republican. He did a great job representing the citizens of Arizona’s Eighth District for over twenty years. Since his first election in 1984, he has won all but once of his races with at least 60% of the vote.
Even after coming out as a gay man, he continued to champion issues the same issues that he had championed before he came out — particularly free trade. If he wanted to be remembered as anything, it would be as the man who broke down trade barriers between nations. I remember how his eyes would light up as he talked about a hemisphere-wide free trade zone. As he retires, while he has not yet seen that goal realized, he should be proud that he helped secure the passage this year of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), one of the most significant accomplishments of this Congress.
His departure will be a great loss to the Republican caucus and to the House. Even with his success and prominence, Jim remained a down-to-earth guy. Decent and hard-working, Jim is as eager to promote Republican principles as he is to describe the beauty of the Arizona desert near his Tucson home.
While Jim would surely rather be remembered for championing free trade than for being an openly gay Republican, he provides a good example for all gay Republicans. When he came out, he continued to promote Republican principles of small government and open markets. By and large, his sexuality remained incidental to his service.
I’m sure that, in his retirement, Jim will continue to remain active, speaking out on free trade and exploring the Arizona desert. While his retirement represents a loss to the public policy process, his service remains an inspiration to us all. We wish him well in all his future endeavors.
-Dan (AKA GayPatriotWest): GayPatriotWest@aol.com
I hate to see Congressman Kolbe retire. He has been an outstanding representative of his Arizona district and has served us all through his work on trade issues.
I will never forget the disgusting way he was treated when he spoke at the 2000 Republican National Convention in Philadelphia. Right wing kooks in the Texas delegation, which had the front row, turned their backs on him. One dark-haired bitch seemed to be the ringleader of that insult, and rude behavior toward every moderate speaker, and her snarling face is forever etched in my memory as the most repulsive feature at a GOP convention since Pat Buchanan spoke at the ’92 convention and helped torpedo Bush 41’s re-election chances.
Yes, Dan, Kolbe did turn out to be a pleasant surprise – a decent man.
Happy Thanksgiving. Let’s say a prayer for out troops. Some nice pics from Iraq.
HEY GP… Good Blog and Happy Thanksgiving!!!
I hope you are doing well.
Good riddance to Mr. RINO Jim Kolbe. We need to secure our borders and Mr Kolbe was not very helpful at all.
#4
Hmm. That makes a person a RINO?
Besides, I’d much rather have a RINO than any form of liberal any day.
I guess that makes GW Bush a RINO under #4’s criteria.
#7
Yeah. It’s nowhere near lionizing liberals who tell you how much they love you then f*ck you over with no lube, is it? But they’re heroes because they have that “D” after their name. You can get screwed over till your bloody raw, but by god they have that “D”.
Those are the TRUE heroe’s, eh?
Good blog as always, Dan. And yes, we need more examples of gay GOP leadership like Kolbe. I would love to hear what these gutless demoncRATS think of our “intolerant” GOP giving Kolbe the chairmanship of an important House committee. When was the last openly gay demoncRAT ever the head of a House or Senate committee?
Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
I thought so.
Happy Thanksgiving and HOOK ‘EM HORNS !
Regards,
Peter Hughes
#10
This morning I would have said GIG ‘EM!!!
40-29, TGC. See y’all in Austin next year versus the #1 Texas Longhorns!! YEE HAW!!
Regards,
Peter Hughes
Hmmm….so now Kolbe IS available for political director for Log Cabin….
If not as Political Director … he may wish to be able to spend more time in Arizona, not less … ceratinly a place at the table could be made for him to help the LCR in chapter activities and recruiting more G/L Republicans to get involved in overt politics, even in running for office. Personally, I feel he’s an effective role-model in that he did not let being gay…closted or being out…get in the way of his active participation in politics and representative governance.
More members of the G/L community need to get involved in governanace, not just activism and fund-raising. Waving a big bankroll is nothing compared to the visibility and respect of participation in governance, constitutent service and yes, …porkbarreling.
I always got a laugh out of the AFA’s call for Kolbe’s arrest after the GOP announced he would speak at the gop convention.
Kolbe never supported the Federal Marriage Amendment. He did support DOMA (he gave a state’s rights justification for that).
Arrest Mr. Kolbe
AFA Action Alert, July 28, 2000
American Family Association
Dr. Donald E. Wildmon, President
Tim Wildmon, Vice President
Buddy Smith, Editor
P.O. Drawer 2440
Tupelo, MS 38803
Phone (662) 844-5036
Fax (662) 842-7789
According to ABCNews.com
July 24 – Rep. Jim Kolbe of Arizona is set to make history next Tuesday when he will become the first openly gay member of Congress to address a Republican convention.
The Arizona congressman will have a prime-time speaking slot, addressing the GOP on trade issues for three minutes between 8 and 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Kolbe, first elected in 1984, is the most senior openly gay member of Congress and is the only openly gay Republican in the House.
Having Kolbe speak at the convention was an idea first raised by Washington city councilman David Catania in April, when the Log Cabin Republicans, the most prominent gay GOP organization, met with presidential candidate George W. Bush.
Bush met with the group, a first for a candidate preparing to pick up the GOP presidential nomination, despite his opposition to many of the its issues, including gay marriage.
Log Cabin Republicans Pleased
Members of the Log Cabin Republicans are delighted by Kolbe’s place in the convention lineup , especially considering that he backed Bush’ s rival, Sen. John McCain, during the primary season.
According to the group, this is the first time a well-known openly gay person has gone to the podium at the GOP national convention. In 1996, a little-known Log Cabin Republican member from California, Steve Fong, gave a low-profile, one-minute speech amid little fanfare.
But some socially conservative Republicans, who are opposed to gay rights and have warned Bush about reaching out to the gay community, are unhappy with the prospect of having Kolbe speak.
One leading conservative Republican told ABCNEWS he was “flabbergasted” by the decision, and called it a “shock.”
“It is not going to be a happy time,” said the Republican. “I think it is a really bad decision.”
Kolbe is a founding member of the National Advisory Board of the Log Cabin Republicans, the nation’s most prominent gay GOP group. In 1997, he gave the keynote address at the Log Cabin Republicans convention. Kolbe was a strong proponent of the North American Free Trade Agreement.
[End ABC News Story]
Action Needed
AFA’s good friend and ally, Mr. Phil Burress, shared his excellent letter to Republican National Committee Chairman Jim Nicholson. Here is Mr. Burress’ letter:
Mr. Nicholson,
I am Phil Burress, Chairman of Equal Rights not Special Rights based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Cincinnati challenged the ideal that homosexuality or sexual orientation is a minor class or a class of people worthy of special protection under the law. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously upheld the right of the people of the Cincinnati to prohibit special rights based on ones sex partner. Therefore, Mr. Kolbe as a self described homosexual means nothing except to say he engages in sodomy. Did you know that in Arizona, sodomy is against the law? Mr. Kolbe should be arrested when he returns to his home state for violating state law. Would you agree that all lawmakers should insist that all laws be enforced? Respectfully, Phil Burress
What follows is the address for Republican National Committee Chairman Nicholson in case you wish to contact him about the Kolbe invitation. For your reference, the Arizona Sodomy Law is Arizona Revised Statue Title 13 Section 1411.
Mr. Jim Nicholson, Chairman
Republican National Committee
Republican National Convention
Phone: (215) 762-9900
Email: kgilbert@republicanconvention.org
Very true. You always seem to get your facts right.
Avax
Now we have this!
—–Original Message—–
From: Jack Harper [mailto:jhrtp@msn.com]
Subject: Militant Liberals will stop at nothing to defeat Senator Harper in the Republican Primary.
Friends,
I have heard it several times so far, “I thought your opponent in the debate was a Democrat. He’s a Republican?”
That’s right! If you watched the C.C.E.C. debate between myself and challenger, John Zerby, you would question his registration as well. No one could believe the liberal positions that Zerby was taking. It all comes down to the liberal special-interest groups that Zerby has pledge allegiance to. In the audience was a member of a militant gay and lesbian organization that apparently had coached Zerby on his talking points to oppose the Marriage Amendment. Also in the audience were several union members that supported Zerby’s call for higher taxes and socialized medicine.
As you may have heard, the head of a gay-rights group in Arizona has vowed to defeat the legislators that referred the Marriage Amendment to the ballot. In what appears to a choreographed smear by the Democratic Party, Senator Cheuvront, the only openly homosexual Senator has lodged a partisan complaint with the Senate Ethics Committee against me. My opponent and the militant liberal groups that support him will undoubtedly jump on the issue. I am confident that the complaint will be dismissed, as the Republican Caucus Attorney has stated that Cheuvront and Aboud (The only openly lesbian Senator) did not have the right to hold the floor without making new points. They only repeated themselves several time to kill the opportunity to refer the Marriage Amendment to the ballot. This is “dilatory” by Senate Rules, and is not allowed.
Because of the Democratic Party meddling in my Republican Primary election, yet again, the Republican Committee for Legislative District Four endorsed my candidacy at the LD-4 meeting tonight, July 21st. For this reason, and that Zerby has never attended a Republican event and refuses to still, the district committee decided to endorse rather than stay neutral.
The culture war did not end when the Marriage Amendment was referred to the ballot. Are you ready to get involved and make a difference? It is within 45 days of the primary election, and state law prevents HOA’s from banning political yard signs. Can I put one in your yard? Just email back and see how your time sacrifice can push this campaign to victory!
State Senator Jack Harper
623-680-3530
Harper under attack in today’s paper:
Ariz. Dems file ethics complaint over GOP tactic
by Amanda J. Crawford – Jul. 21, 2008 07:32 PM
The Arizona Republic
An end-of-session maneuver that cut short a Democratic filibuster and paved the way for lawmakers to refer the same-sex marriage ban to the fall ballot is now the subject of a rare formal ethics complaint…
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/07/21/20080721ethics0721-ON.html
State Senator
Jack Harper