What Log Cabin Executive Director R. Clarke Cooper giveth in one release on Thursday, with his strong statement on Obama’s fundraising pitch to the gay community, he taketh (partially) away in another that very day with a threatening language  directed against his own party’s presidential nominee:

Marriage equality has captured the nation’s attention, and the response to President Obama’s announcement is evidence of the tide turning in favor of equality for all. . . .

Governor Mitt Romney’s statement in opposition to not just marriage but civil unions jeopardizes his ability to win moderates, women and younger voters, especially as a large majority of Americans favor some form of relationship recognition for their LGBT friends and neighbors.

Equality for all?  What’s that mean?  It’s certainly not a conservative slogan, but one more familiar to a Mr. W. Smith.

Clarke is right to criticize Romney for his “opposition to not just marriage but civil unions”, but his tone is counterproductive.  Moderates, women and younger voters won’t vote against him because of his stand on gay marriage.  They will, however, vote against him if he makes that stand central to his campaign.  They’re not going to decide their vote exclusively on gay marriage.  He would have served himself (and the cause of his organization) better had he merely expressed disappointment with Romney’s position.

Clarke is not the only non-left gay leader to offer intemperate remarks about Romney this week.  Our pal JimmyLaSalvia, Executive Director and Co-Founder of GOProud, “With his speech at Falwell’s Liberty University, it is clear that Governor Romney’s message to Goldwater conservatives is: drop dead.”  Earlier today, Governor Romney delivered the commencement address there.

While we would rather the Republican nominee not have to make a courtesy call at Jerry Falwell U (as have all Republican candidates “in recent years“), Romney’s speech hardly amounted to a repudiation of Goldwater’s small government ideals.  Indeed, his talk barely touched upon government’s role in society, save to remind the graduating students that “Religious liberty is the first freedom in our Constitution“. He focused instead on the importance of family and faith.

And he did say, what we already know him to believe, “Marriage is a relationship between one man and one woman.” He offered nothing new on social issues — and didn’t attack gay people or advocate policies anathema to libertarians. (more…)

In talking to pjmedia, GOProud Executive Director Jimmy LaSalvia focused on the group’s efforts to communicate “why conservative principles are good for different constituencies.”  Nice to see this movie away from the identity politics practiced by other gay groups.  The issue is not legislation specifying sexual orientation, but adopting policies which don’t single out any group.

“The issue,” Jimmy said “is why do gay people let the left determine what’s important to gay people?”   Indeed.  “What we talk about every single day is conservative policies that are good for everybody are good for gay Americans, too.”

Do gay small businessmen who bemoan the red tape they faces in opening up a new shop — or expanding their current enterprise — realize that the party who benefits from the donations they make to HRC has, to a large extent, placed those burdens on job creators?   These entrepreneurs would benefit from Republican policies reducing regulation.  The less government intrusion there is, the greater freedom we have to express ourselves.

Yeah, the president provides lip service to regulatory reform, but his record — and that of his fellow partisans — stands in stark contrast to that rhetoric.  Obama may say the right things on gay issues, but his policies hurt gay businessmen and women — as they hurt entrepreneurs of all backgrounds.

So, kudos to Jimmy and Chris Barron for taking up the benefits of conservative policies.  Perhaps, at some later date, when they raise more money, they could commission a study to show how federal, state and local mandates impact specific gay entrepreneurs.  And maybe then those folks would realize that although they attend the various HRC functions to network within the community, their participation in such events provides support to policies which increase the cost of doing business.

Our friends at GOProud get the nature of Ron Paul’s appeal. In his critique of the president’s State of the Union address, Christopher R. Barron, Co-Founder and Chief Strategist for the group offered a nice synopsis of what kind of leader libertarian Republicans want:

The American people – gay and straight – deserve a President who will encourage free enterprise to grow the American economy and create jobs. We need a President who understands that government doesn’t have all the answers – indeed often government is the problem. We need a President who will defend individual liberty and keep Americans safe, at home and abroad. In short, we need a new President.

Nice to see the leader of a gay group commend free enterprise and the ideal which allows it to flourish — individual liberty. And to make clear that we need replace a failed incumbent.

In congratulating Newt Gingrich on his victory last night, our friend Chris Barron, Co-Founder and Chief Strategist of GOProud, noted something significant about the former Speaker’s South Carolina success:

Tonight, we congratulate Speaker Gingrich on his victory in South Carolina. We are hopeful that in the contests ahead that Speaker Gingrich will run the type of positive campaign he promised earlier in the primary process.

It is clear that Speaker Gingrich’s poll numbers improved dramatically once he ended his unnecessary and unproductive attacks on Governor Mitt Romney’s record at Bain Capital. As conservatives we should make it clear that we are the champions of free enterprise.

Emphasis added.  He’s right.  Newt surged not because of his attacks on Mitt Romney’s work in the private sector but instead because of his attacks on the media’s flacking for those who favor a larger public sector.

Our friends at GOProud were enthusiastic about Mitt Romney’s remarks on gay people in this morning’s debate.  In a release, they cited something the presidential candidate said beyond the commentary he offered on marriage last night:

After pointing out that while Massachusetts’s governor, a member of his cabinet was gay and he appointed judges regardless of sexual orientation, he said,

“If people are looking for someone who will discriminate against gays or will in any way try and suggest that people — that have different sexual orientation don’t have full rights in this country, they won’t find that in me.”

This led the group’s Executive Director, Jimmy LaSalvia (who has himself endorsed Romney) to comment:

We thank Governor Romney for having the political courage to speak up for gay Americans. He made it crystal clear this morning that he will be the type of President that gay people, and those who care about gays and lesbians in this country, can trust and be proud of.

On issue after issue – whether it’s the economy, jobs, taxes, energy, healthcare or retirement security – Mitt Romney is offering common-sense conservative plans that will improve the lives of all Americans – gay or straight.

Smart strategy to praise the candidate for what he has said.  Should help them gain influence since the candidate win election to the White House.

If I had to choose among the four leading contenders (at least according to the latest polls) for the Republican nomination, I would settle on former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney not so much because of his strengths, but because of the weaknesses of the other three.

Although Rick Santorum is not the extremist portrayed in the legacy (and gay) media, the former Pennsylvania Senator is more of a George W. Bush Republican than any of the other contenders and, over the years, has made some pretty bizarre statements about homosexuality.  Excellent on domestic issues (and asking important questions on money and banking), Ron Paul favors an isolationist policy at a time of growing unrest abroad — and he has himself made some strange statements.  And there were those, as Ace puts it, “old-line racist/neoconfederate ravings in Paul’s newsletters“.

And then there’s Newt, often eloquent on the stump, brimming with ideas, but also a man who responds in a manner similar to the Democratic incumbent when political rivals criticize him and his record.  And he does have a lot of baggage.

That said, although I prefer Romney to his three leading competitors, I’m not yet ready to sign up for his campaign or signal my support for him.  I have expressed my concerns about his candidacy on several occasions, notably here and here.

My friend Jimmy LaSalvia, Executive Director of GOProud, however, has expressed no such hesitation:

Ann Coulter, the honorary chair of GOProud’s Advisory Council, is rarely wrong — and when it comes to the 2012 Republican nomination, she is spot on: If conservatives want to defeat Barack Obama, then it is time to rally around former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

. . . .

Let me be very clear, this is a personal — not an organizational — endorsement. GOProud represents a wide swath of right-of-center individuals and our members support a wide range of candidates for president. I believe there are many good candidates in this field and I respect the decisions of those who support other candidates. For me, however, this decision is an easy one: Only Mitt Romney can beat Barack Obama in November.

Taking on those who “conservatives who have had and who continue to have misgivings about Mitt Romney”, Jimmy reminds us “that plenty of our greatest conservative leaders have had similar evolutions. (more…)

As a member of the GOProud Board, I’m publishing this statement:

On behalf of the GOProud Board and its members and supporters, we want to make it very clear that “outing” a gay or lesbian individual is wrong and should never be used as a political weapon.

Private lives should remain just that — private. The right to disclose one’s sexual orientation belongs solely to each individual. We will continue to oppose “outing” as it has never advanced a political cause but only hurts individuals and their families.

We strongly regret the events of this week.

-Bruce (GayPatriot)

Based upon my experience as an uncle, having seen (or currently witnessing) eight nephews pass through the late single-digit stage, if an 8-year-old boy were to, of his own accord, ask a question of a presidential candidate, he might ask him to name his favorite superhero or to discuss the various characters in Star Wars. He would not ask a question about homosexuality.

Which brings me to this video:

Now, despite the attempts of the folks at Yahoo! to spin this as Michele Bachmann vs. the 8-Year-Old, just by watching the video, it’s clear his mother is putting him to telling the candidate, “My mommy’s gay, but she doesn’t need fixing.”

Now, to Mrs. Bachmann’s credit, she’s not rude; she just refuses to answer.  The real question (which our friends at Yahoo! fail to ask) is why the boy’s mother didn’t have the guts to make a similar statement to the Congresswoman.  Unlike the hestitant child, the woman could follow up with the candidate, pressing her to respond.

Despite her social conservatism, Mrs. Bachmann (in the current presidential campaign) has shown considerable reluctance to talk about her views on homosexuality.  As we reported here, she didn’t even respond to GOProud’s request for a meeting.  And that is a serious strike against her.

It is legitimate to ask the candidate about her views on homosexuality.  It’s pathetic when a mother puts up her son to speak on her behalf.  And it’s telling that the media eager to make a martyr of the boy don’t call the mother out on her cowardice.

I guess the only “real gay bashing” is one that involves gays of a Leftist persuasion? (h/t – Peter Hughes)

Via The Daily Caller:

For as long as I have been out and amongst gay Republicans, I have heard my partisan and philosophical peers clamoring for a conservative alternative to HRC and the other left-leaning gay groups based in our nation’s capital.

These iconoclastic gays were concerned that Log Cabin had become too cozy with these groups.  Many left the organization in the 1990s and stayed further away in the early to mid-2000s when the national board seemed more interested in securing the favor of the gay establishment than in standing for conservative principles.

This tension — between a Log Cabin board hesitant to distinguish itself from HRC et al. and (most) rank-and-file gay conservatives — came to a head in 2009 when Chris Barron laid the groundwork for GOProud.  Perhaps because of the success of this fledgling organization in attracting media attention (and financial support), Log Cabin, under Executive Director R. Clarke Cooper, started sounding increasingly Republican.

Gay conservatives and Republicans benefit wit two vibrant right-of-center gay organizations providing a free-market alternative to the various “equality” groups.

Instead, however, of allowing the tension between the two groups serve to spur each to promote more aggressively conservative ideas and demonstrate how such ideas benefit gay people, the national leadership of Log Cabin is ostracizing one of its chapters, ostensibly because the group invited GOProud’s leadership to its annual dinner:

Saying that the leadership of Log Cabin Republicans of Dallas, especially longtime chapter president Rob Schlein, have “engaged in a consistent pattern of behavior that detracts from the mission of our organization,” national Log Cabin Executive Director R. Clarke Cooper announced this week that the previous Dallas chapter has been de-chartered, and a new chapter created.

. . . .

Schlein said he believes “the Dallas chapter was kicked out after inviting [GOProud co-founders] Chris Barron and Jimmy LaSalvia to speak at our [upcoming] Grand Old Party.

Guess inclusion just don’t win when it comes to Log Cabin’s internal affairs.

Announcing Ann Coulter was joining the organization’s Advisory Council as Honorary Chair with the official title of “Gay Icon”, Christopher Barron, Chairman of GOProud’s Board, called the diva best-selling author “a brilliant and fearless leader of the conservative movement”:

. . . we are honored to have her as part of GOProud’s leadership. . . . Ann helped put our organization on the map. Politics is full of the meek, the compromising and the apologists – Ann, like GOProud, is the exact opposite of all of those things.

Indeed she is.  Quite the opposite.  Here’s Ann on C-SPAN.

The lady doesn’t mince words.

RELATED: Reconsidering Ann Coulter

Unlike his predecessors at Log Cabin, R. Clarke Cooper, the current executive director, has distinguished himself by regularly defending Republicans who hold firm to Reaganite principles.  It does seem the success of GOProud has reminded the older group it needs do a better job establishing its Republican bona fides.

They still alas have retained a residue of the old organization, with occasional paeans to the statist ideology of the gay left and a noticeable failure to consider gay issues in light of conservative ideals, where the government neither serves as the agent of social change nor acts as a barrier to such change.

Yesterday, however, Log Cabin did join the mainstream conservatives in heralding the debt deal as a start, not a solution, a notion which tracks nicely with Datechguy’s description of the deal as turning “the ship so it is facing in the right direction” without yet steaming forward in said direction.

“Speaker John Boehner and Senator Mitch McConnell,” Cooper said

. . . set a clear goal, refusing to approve President Obama’s request for blank check unless it was accompanied by spending reforms and cuts larger than the amount of the debt limit hike. That goal has been achieved, but nobody should believe that this is more than a stopgap measure. The culture of spending in Washington must fundamentally change going forward. This is only the first step in a course that will dramatically alter how our government approaches the budget and will provide fiscal stability for Wall Street and Main Street.

Nice to see Log Cabin standing firm against the culture of spending in Washington and reminding gay people of Republican efforts to contain the growth of the federal government.

Although I returned earlier today from my mini-vacation, I have yet to weigh in on the decision of CPAC to exclude our friends at GOProud.  This is sad news indeed and a sign that some conservatives would rather dwell on trivial issues than focus on our common conservatives principles.   Although, by and large, rank-and-file “movement” conservatives (particularly those born since 1960) have become increasingly welcome of their gay fellows, there still are pockets in the movement who would exclude folks like us.

And some of those pockets have considerable sway in the conservative movement today.

We here at GayPatriot share the disappointment of GOProud’s Board who released a statement earlier today:

We are deeply disappointed at the decision of the American Conservative Union to bar GOProud from participating in CPAC. They are well within their right to do so, but a decision like this will have consequences.

For the last two years, GOProud has sought to support CPAC and keep the conservative movement united. . . .

What is truly sad is that this troubling development takes place at a time when we should be united and focused on defeating Barack Obama.

It is unfortunate at this time of remarkable unity among conservatives and Republicans about the need to focus on the principles Ronald Reagan articulated throughout his political career, cutting the size of the federal government, reducing its scope, returning power to individuals and the associations they choose to join or otherwise support that some would seek to exclude an organization committed to those ideals.

We are delighted to note that a number of leading “new media” conservatives have decided to boycott CPAC as a result of the decision to exclude GOProud as Glenn Reynolds reports:

ANDREW BREITBART WILL SKIP CPAC over its GOProud ban.

Roger Simon is boycotting too. And I won’t be there either. Of course, I don’t usually go anyway.

NICK ADDS: Great to see Breitbart standing with us. The true sign, however, will be to see what Ann Coulter does.

Yeah, this is a great strategy to show that gay people are emotionally balanced:

A horde of glitter-wielding gay “barbarians” on Thursday paid a visit to a clinic owned by GOP presidential candidate Michele Bachmann and her husband, Marcus. . . .

Once the horde was notified that Marcus, a strategist for his wife’s presidential campaign, was not at the clinic, their leader told the group, “All right, folks, Marcus isn’t coming out so we’re gonna have to act like barbarians.”

With that, the smiling group of about 10 showered the waiting room with glitter while chanting, “You can’t pray away the gay, baby I was born this way.”

Fortunately, these juveniles in need of venting their rage in the public square and drawing attention to themselves are not representative of the gay community.  Let’s hope that gay leaders denounce their childish antics.

This is not to deny these folks the opportunity to criticize Mr. Bachmann and the practices at his clinic, but to criticize their manner of taking issue with him.  Indeed, we should take him to task for his comments on the “sinful nature” of homosexual behavior, but in a civil manner, likely to win favor for our arguments, not gain sympathy for the man under attack.

Taking issue with these clowns, Sister Toldjah contrasts their actions with GOProud’s attempts to meet with Mrs. Bachmann:

Whatever you feel about “gay rights” issues, you have to respect [GOProud Chairman Chris] Barron’s position. It’s amazing what happens once you take liberal narcissism out of the equation, isn’t it? Gay conservatives want answers about Bachmann’s various policy positions, including issues of interest to the gay community – and, unlike HRC and the like, Chris Barron is going to get them. (more…)

Just about a year ago, I blogged that I would “reconsider my opposition” to hate crimes legislation should I see ”convincing evidence that such laws actually reduce violent crime”.  In that post, I pointed out that “we have a whole raft of evidence showing that crime rates go down when states adopt concealed-carry laws.”

Hence my belief that such legislation advances “gay rights” because it offers us an effective tool to protect ourselves from gay-bashers.  If such creeps fear we have a gun, they’ll be less likely to attack.

Just this week, we learn how effective that fear can be — and how it served to protect one of our friends attacked by a teenager in a jurisdiction with “a hate crimes law explicitly address[ing] sexual orientation.”

Riding home from work on his bike a few days ago, GOProud Executive Director Jimmy LaSalvia “was attacked on a secluded street behind Union Station“:

. . . the unidentified youth punched him in the chest about 8:30 p.m. as he rode past the youth and six or seven other male teenagers who were with the person that struck him on 2nd Street, N.E. just north of L Street.

After calling Jimmy a “faggot”,

the attacker and a few of the others with him “puffed up their chests and were clearly ready to continue the attack,” [Jimmy] said. But seconds later, the group fled the scene after he kept his hand inside his backpack, “allowing them to wonder if I was reaching for a gun.”

The District’s hate crimes law didn’t deter Jimmy’s attackers; the fear he had a gun did.

Glad to hear Jimmy’s doing okay.

Another smart move from our friends at GOProud.

Instead of demagoguing Michele Bachmann’s stance on gay issues, Chris Barron, chairman of the group’s board, who like yours truly, is “concerned about comments Bachmann has made about gay people and . . . troubled by her support for a federal marriage amendment“, is requesting a meeting with the outspoken Minnesota Republican:

As gay-issue advocacy groups increase pressure on Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann over her views about homosexuality, the gay conservative group GOProud is requesting a meeting with the Republican presidential candidate to possibly lend a hand. . . .

“We have requested a meeting with Michele Bachmann,” LaSalvia told The Ticket. “We’ve made this request, as with the other requests, in good faith.” He said GOProud officials intend to “discuss issues important to gay conservatives” with Bachmann and “anything she wishes to talk about.”

Well, let’s hope that the line about lending a hand was a bit of reporter Chris Moody’s rhetorical embellishment.

Perhaps, if gay people approach Mrs. Bachmann with a mind to civil discourse (instead of berating her in a demagogic fashion), they might succeed in changing her views on homosexuality.   Yeah, maybe it’s just a hope that a civil meeting could effect a change, but, heck, Democrats based an entire political campaign on such sentiments.

It could also help for her to learn that gay conservatives, like those Tea Party members who have made her their heroine, support small government and personal freedom and don’t turn to the state to solve our problems or resolve social issues.

ADDENDUM:  Oh, and one more thing.  To those who criticize this move, do you have a better plan to try to get Mrs. Bachmann to change her views on homosexuality?

So patent is HRC President Joe Solmonese’s pandering to Democratic politicians it’s almost as if he were prepping a skit for Saturday Night Live. Left-of-center lesbian blogress Pam Spaulding once compared his interaction with the White House to that of Sally Field winning an Oscar, seeking reassurance that the president’s team still likes him, right now, they like him.

Well, Joe took a step yesterday showing that he is still eager to win the White House’s affection, endorsing Barack Obama for re-election before the Republican field has even been set (and more than seventeen months before the actual election).  Let’s hope he has better luck with his endorsement than did Elizabeth Birch, one of his predecessors who, in 1996, endorsed an incumbent Democratic president for reelection only to have their endorsee sign the Defense of Marriage Act not long thereafter.  Lot of good that endorsement did.  Despite Clinton’s taking gay voters from granted, HRC did not rescind the endorsement.

And while this endorsement (just like that one) comes as no surprise — Joe’s blind devotion to the Democratic party has long been clear — something happened yesterday that comes as an incredible surprise, shattering the firmament of the gay political establishment.  No, it wasn’t the swift response from our friends at GOProud whose executive director Jimmy LaSalvia, within an hour of HRC’s announcement, said the “pre-emptive endorsement” shows HRC to be “little more than a puppet of the Democratic National Committee“.  Since their founding, our friends at GOProud have not hesitated to criticize HRC’s blind allegiance to the Democratic Party.

The real shocker was that not long after GOProud’s LaSalvia issued his statement, Log Cabin’s, yes, Log Cabin‘s Executive Director followed suit.  Yep, R. Clarke Cooper did something one of his predecessors instructed his staff never, never to do.  He criticized not just the executive director of another gay organization, but that organization itself.  And he didn’t mince words in doing so:

By prostrating themselves before Barack Obama eighteen months before the 2012 election, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has effectively told the president that he doesn’t have to do anything more to earn gay and lesbian votes. (more…)

Our friends at GOProud remind us that Jim Messina, the man President Obama tapped to head his reelection campaign produced a gay-bashing ad in 2002 against Montana Republican US Senate hopeful Mike Taylor:

The ad was roundly condemned by gay rights groups as anti-gay.

The ad can be seen here.

According to an article in The Nation, Messina “touted the ad as the way to do politics in the West.”

“The fact that Obama would select a campaign manager who practices the lowest kind of character assassination politics is outrageous on its own – the fact that he would then turn to the gay community and bankroll this kind of campaign is beyond the pale,” said GOProud Board Chairman Christopher R. Barron.

Despite Messina’s notorious reputation for the Montana ad not a single national gay group has spoken out about this hire by Obama until now.

Seems for those gay groups, all’s fair when advancing a Democratic candidate.

Earlier this week, a reader sent me Ben Smith’s Politico post on what he deemed, “The Gay Republican tide“.  I found the blogger’s word choice interesting:

This year’s iconic Conservative Political Action Conference was beset by controversy over the inclusion of a gay Republican group — but that was just the start of gay demands for acceptance in the broader conservative moment, according to an OUT story calculated to inflame social conservatives:

Emphasis added.  Granted Smith may have penned this post in a rush, as we bloggers often do.  That said, as is, his word choice suggests that gay Republicans have adopted a confrontational tone with the GOP.  That may have been true in Log Cabin’s early years, but today, we’re not so much demanding acceptance as finding a welcome.

Yeah, there still remain social conservatives loath to include us in conservative conclaves, but, by and large, we’ve found a welcome.  Conservatives today are more concerned with the size of government than they are with the private lives of individuals — and pretty much have been for the past forty years, only the media do seem to dwell on the presence of religious conservatives in the movement as if said indviduals define it, rather than represent one aspect of it.

In praising the comprehensive budget plan that House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan introduced today, Jimmy LaSalvia, Executive Director of GOProud reminds us of a criticism Democrats have been leveling against Republicans for the past two years:

The left constantly berated Republicans in the last Congress for supposedly failing to offer alternatives, labeling the GOP as the ‘party of no’. Today, the liberal smear machine is in full force, attacking Rep. Ryan and House Republicans for having the political courage to put forward a comprehensive budget plan. Democrats in Congress are offering no such plan, and the President offers no such plan either; it seems just a few months after attacking Republicans for supposedly failing to offer solutions that it is indeed the Democratic Party that is totally devoid of any plan to solve our budget crisis.

It’s almost as if Democrats (and their allies) were accusing Republicans of lacking a plan in order to “bait” them to present one so they could attack as “extreme.”

Nice to see a gay group reminding us a smaller government which spends less is good for gay people.

UPDATE:  Log Cagin has now followed suit, with R. Clarke Cooper, the organization’s Executive Director, calling the Ryan plan “a serious budget in response to the serious challenges facing our nation today“.

*About the deficit.