If Andrew Sullivan were not so obsessed with Sarah Palin and actually took the time to understand gay people outside the left-wing circles he now frequents, he might have something intelligent to say about why gays were the only demographic where McCain did significantly better than did George W. Bush four years ago.
Take a moment to think about it; the answer is easy. Gay people, like all Americans, vote on a great variety of issues, not just items of particular concern to our demographic. That McCain did not the same ties to social conservatives as did W reassured gay voters. Not just that. McCain had not only opposed the Federal Marriage Amendment in 2004, he actually spoken out against it. No serious commentator could even claim he was using us as a wedge issue.
Had it not been for the market meltdown and McCain’s failure to articulate an economic message, the Republican would have surely garnered 30 if not 35% of the gay vote.
You’ll notice this post is considerably shorter than my average posts. That’s because there’s really not much to say. Basically, John McCain did better among gay Americans because, unlike George W. Bush in 2004, he did not give us a reason to vote against him.
Of course, I’d like to think that our posts and my essays in the Washington Blade and on gaywired.com made a difference, in no small part because I reminded them how this year’s Repubilcan nominee actually reached out to gays within his party. 🙂
That is a good question, why did he do better. Maybe because he appeared safer over all then Obama? Just speculation.
As a veteran I felt I would be better served by McCain. His military service spoke volumes about his dedication. With two wars on the table Obama does nt have the experience to handle them. Let’s hope he gets Colin Powell on board or someone with similar credentials who won’t want to cut and run.
I also did research on Obama’s senate voting record and realized that he had actually voted against repealing taxes on families and individuals that Clinton had put into place. I would be surprised if Obama doesn’t raise taxes on the middle class. Clinton made a similar promise to lower taxes on the middle class and in 1993 he actually raised taxes on the middle class.
Additionally, Karl Rove was not around to use gays a a wedge issue. That is what kept me home in the 2004 election. I could not vote for either candidate in 2004. I would not have been able to vote my conscience.
Steve,
Taxes will go up directly through an increase in the marginal rate also through an increase in gasoline taxes. Indirectly costs will go up from increased tax rates on businesses who will then roll the costs down. Finally costs will go up in general as we continue ethanol production and the government attempts to reduce fossil fuel use by artificially inflating the price. Oh I forgot, in addition to that sunshine they will spend more money then god and run up 700-800 billion dollar deficits which will reduce our purchase power as inflation increases. Aint that a piece of sunshine in the morning.
By the way I am veteran to and spent a one god awful year in Iraq.
Dan, I also think that if McCain did not pick Palin, and chose someone more like minded on gay rights issues, that would have also led to a higher percentage of gay persons voting for McCain.
You’re correct that gay persons, like any other person, are going to look at other issues. And even though I found Obama was better on gay rights than McCain, he was palatable enough for moderate gay persons. But Palin showed herself to be fairly anti-gay (yes, I know you disagree). Some of it may have been perception, but she herself said she disagreed with McCain on the FMA. And frankly, being “tolerant” of gays is no longer good enough.
All in all this is a good thing. But now as the Republican Party looks towards the next election cycles, what things are they going to keep, and what are they going to change. I hope they view the increase of gay voter support as a good thing, and try to increase it even more the next time around. Or I hope they don’t decide that they need to pander more to the extreme religious right. The latter strategy will hurt the Republican Party as the exit polls have shown. Younger people are more pro-gay rights.
At least McCain didn’t bring a homophobic “ex-gay” preacher on his South Carolina tour, like Obama did.
Sullivan is a pilgarlic.
The 2004 Presidential Election can easily be considered an aberration, a low point for Republicans with regard to the gay vote, because of President Bush’s championing of the the FMA that year.
Comparing 2008 to the 2000 election, John McCain improved upon Bush’s total by 2%.
Could that 2% be the Hillary vote? From my experience, some of Senator Clinton’s most bitter partisans, the one’s who simply couldn’t get over her loss, were her gay and lesbian supporters.
That extra 2% may have more to do with Hillary Clinton’s failed candidacy, than it does with John McCain.
I wish I had the faith in the logic and thoughtfulness of our brothers and sisters across the country. They generally succumb to the hysteria of the mass media and I don’t believe that it would have made much of a difference at all if that obviously hateful woman had not been picked and someone else more along the centrist/realist lines had been.
I heard in passing today that O’Hussy is going to raise taxes on single people. At the same time, he is against gay marriage. Well, now, doesn’t that seem like we’re being targeted AGAIN?
At 57, I am used to every insult that can be thrown at us. It seems to me that those rabid leftie queens in KKKalifornia and other liberal havens haven’t realized how deep the compost heap is that they have gotten us into.
God save our country.
Who the hell cares what Andrew Sullivan thinks about anything?
I sure don’t.
Leonidas: “God save our country”.
Well, She has before; this time will be no different.