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…)

In the past few months since R. Clarke Cooper took over at Log Cabin Executive Director of Log Cabin, the group actually started sounding like Republicans, standing up for fiscal responsibility and clarity in world affairs.  Cooper did something that two of his predecessors seemed reluctant to do, criticize Democrats.  He didn’t seem as eager as they to curry favor with the gay left.

But, now Log Cabin has joined the unhappy Barney Frank in signing on to a big-government piece of legislation at odds the conservative idea of freedom.  Today, the ostensibly Republican outfit issued a release calling “for the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA)“:

“Americans know that advancing employees by merit is what wins for business. Passing ENDA will take discrimination off the table, and ensure that the best of the best are hired, promoted and retained in their jobs.  . . . Discrimination should have no place in our workforce, and where it exists, it undermines American productivity, innovation, and our ability to compete,” said R. Clarke Cooper, Log Cabin Republicans Executive Director.”

Now, I agree that private employers should not discriminate against gay people, but it is not the government’s business to tell them as much.  Yes, indeed, Americans know that advancing employees by merit is what “wins” for business.  And that is why most employers don’t discriminate against gay people.  Once again, government shouldn’t be telling entrepreneurs how to run their enterprises.

They don’t need a nanny state to tell them as much. If a company discriminates against quality gay people, it will suffer in the marketplace, with a lower caliber of worker and a reduced efficiency of operation.

Alas that Log Cabin cannot put forward a conservative position on gay issues and still feels instead it just has to join the gay groups in looking for solutions to the perceived problems in our community.  With increasing social acceptance of gay people, with more and more corporations adopting non-discrimination policies and offering domestic partnership benefits, ENDA is a solution in search of a problem.  And conservatives would do well to oppose it.

ASSIGNMENT (to help our critics understand what freedom means): Could California Gay Bar Be Required to Serve Man Wearing “I Hate Fags” T-shirt?

How times have changed.  It’s now becoming an almost common practice for Log Cabin to do what Republican organizations are wont to do:  criticize a Democratic office holder — and with good conservative reason.

Just received this statement in my in-box:

Log Cabin Republicans call into question the mission and purpose of a United States role in coalition operations to secure the United Nations mandated No-fly Zone over Libya.  There remains no clear objective to Operation Odyssey Dawn, Congress was consulted late in the process and now President Obama has relinquished command and control.

“It is not clear if the United States mission is to liberate the Libyan people from the shackles of the deranged dictator, Moammar Gaddafi.  What is clear to foreign governments President Obama often lies prostrate before is that military actions are secondary to diplomatic perceptions. Noting such dithering and weakness, Americans should not be surprised to learn Brazil concurred with China to call for a cease fire instead of supporting the United Nations Security Council resolution for a No-fly Zone.  This occurred within hours of Obama’s ballyhooed state visit to Brazil.  Further, Russian officials are calling the cobbled together operation ‘a medieval crusade.’  Without a clear mission and objective, Libya will likely devolve into another Somalia where United Nations presence remains to this day.  The Commander-in-Chief owes an explanation to the American people, especially our service members, of what our role is in Libya,” said R. Clarke Cooper, Log Cabin Republicans Executive Director.

Nice to see Log Cabin sounding like other right-of-center outfits.

In the twelve years following Log Cabin setting up shop in Washington, D.C. with a national office, its leadership did little to correct the false impression many gay people have of the GOP as a party whose guiding principle is maintaining straight while male privilege.  Indeed, to some degree, it contributed to that inaccurate impression by focusing its attacks not on big-government Democratic initiatives on Republican politicians.

At the same time, the national office did little to convince rank-and-file Republicans of the organization’s commitment to conservative principles of limited government, judicial restraint and a robust national defense.  That began to change in 2005, when Log Cabin signed on to support the Social Security reforms then-President George W. Bush was promoting.  Not only did this show the group’s commitment to conservative reforms, but Chris Barron, then its political director, showed how those conservative reforms would benefit gay people.

Now GOProud, the new gay conservative group Chris spearheaded, is pushing for similar reforms, calling on Congress to include personal savings accounts in any Social Security reform proposal. Executive Director Jimmy LaSalvia explains:

Personal savings accounts would provide gay and lesbian couples with the same opportunities as other Americans to provide for their retirement security. . . . Personal savings accounts are not just good for gays and lesbians; by creating wealth, empowering individuals to control their own retirement and improving the American economy, they are good for all Americans. [As] the property of the individual, they would . . . allow gays and lesbians to pass their hard earned money on to whoever they choose.

And as GOProud has shown how conservative ideas benefit gay people, Log Cabin has (finally!) begun to articulate a conservative approach on gay issues.  In taking issue with Speaker Boehner on the constitutionality of DOMA, R. Clarke Cooper, Log Cabin’s Executive Director praised the Ohio Republican in keeping the focus on fiscal discipline:

Americans sent Republicans to Congress to address our challenging economy, and thus far under Speaker Boehner’s leadership our party has kept its eye on the ball, cutting spending and beginning to confront the deficit. Now is not the time to fall for the president’s ploy to distract Republicans with divisive social issues like the Defense of Marriage Act. . . .  While Log Cabin Republicans firmly believe that DOMA is an unconstitutional intrusion on states’ rights and a violation of individual liberty, we agree with Speaker Boehner that the constitutionality of this law should be determined by the courts, not by the president unilaterally. (more…)

Perhaps current Log Cabin Executive Director R. Clarke Cooper’s background in Republican politics will serve to save the organization.  Before helming the ostensibly Republican organization, he served in the George W. Bush Administration.  Unlike all previous heads of the organization, he had actual experience working with Republicans outside Massachusetts.  He at least has experience working with more mainstream Republicans.

Alas that most heads of gay conservative organizations, particularly Log Cabin, have had little background in the conservative movement.  The Bay State (until recently) was hardly a hotbed of small-government activism (well, at least not in the Twentieth Century).

Well, despite the “pro-equality” rhetoric in its releases and on its web-page, in recent days, Log Cabin has been sounding a lot more Reaganite than it had under its first two executive directors.  In a largely anodyne release on CPAC, the organization did at least celebrate conservatism.  Then, on Monday, Cooper showed his teeth, lambasting the president for his spendthrift budget:

Our nation is at a breaking point and the president’s budget proposal simply isn’t a serious response to the challenges facing our country today. . . . The American people are facing a Federal debt of over $14 trillion dollars, and the President needs to join with Congress to make significant cuts.  His proposal adds $8.7 trillion in new spending over the next decade—that’s not just irresponsible, that’s reckless.  Americans are tightening their belts and making difficult decisions, and it is time that our government does the same by addressing the real problems dragging down our economy – overblown entitlements, wasteful government spending and a tax code that stifles small businesses and innovation. Republicans in the United States House of Representatives, led by Budget Chairman Paul Ryan, have taken the first step at addressing this crisis by cutting $100 billion this year.  Ryan’s proposal is a great first step, but if we are serious about getting our house in order, there’s more we all need to do.

Whoah, sounds a lot like your humble blogger!  Nice to see a Log Cabin leader issuing releases on issues other than gay ones and showing his commitment to core conservative principles.

Perhaps, GOProud’s prominence pushed Cooper to speak out on such issues.  Whatever the case, it’s welcome sign that Log Cabin leaders are becoming more outspoken on issues of concern to all conservatives.

The reason Log Cabin had such a problem establishing its credibility within Republican circles was that too often it gained media exposure by attacking fellow Republicans and dwelling on gay issues.  For all too many years national office did not regularly take stands on the small-government agenda pushed by Reaganites or the ideas of judicial restraint long championed by Republicans.

They didn’t come around to endorsing the Contract with America until long after Congress voted on its provisions nor did Log Cabin leaders remind voters of the Republican focus on fiscal issues in 1994 and national security matters a decade later.  No wonder some on the right remain skeptical of a gay conservative group, even a new one like GOProud without the baggage of Log Cabin.

One of our readers, my occasional sparring partner and friendly correspondent Lloydletta alerted me to Erick Erickson’s piece on GOProud’s participation in C-PAC.  While that conservative blogger finds it “well and fine” that many on the right are willing to give this fledgling group “a seat at the table”, he remains skeptical of their goals, noting particularly their opposition to a federal amendment defining marriage, their support of DADT repeal and of legislation giving “health benefits to gay couples.”

Perhaps, Erickson has also expressed skepticism about former Vice President Cheney’s commitment to conservatism, given that he holds near identical positions to those of GOProud, particularly on same-sex marriage where he (like this new group) favors a state-by-state approach.

Finally, Erickson notes the group’s silence on a number of key conservative issues: (more…)

Log Cabin still doesn’t get it.  In an e-mail sent out last week (full text below the jump), they attempt a new kind of fusion, welding core Republican principles to the gay organization’s elusive quest for equality.  Not once in their e-mail do they mention the animating ahead behind GOP victories in 2010 (and 1994 and 1980 & 1984 as well as 1860 & 1864):  liberty.   Heck, they even call their 501 (c)(3) the Liberty Education Forum.

Well, Chris Barron of GOProud does now how to talk Republican and is unafraid to discuss gay issues in a manner not pre-approved by HRC, NGLTF and Barney Frank.  And it was GOProud who promoted the stat that 31% of gay people voted Republican last week.

Unlike Log Cabin in 1995, they didn’t wait until six months after the House approved the Contract with America to endorse the party’s reforming agenda.  While they have not endorsed the GOP’s “Pledge to America,” they have made clear (as Chris did on CNN), that they support its underlying principles.

I would argue that because ideas similar to those in that pledge defined the GOP’s fall campaign, the party did so well, well, did so well east of the California Coastal Ranges.  The party, by and large, ignored gay issues and captured a majority of the popular vote — not to mention one-third of the gay vote.

Because GOProud’s Barron and Jimmy LaSalvia know how to talk Republican — and have done so in public fora — they should find doors in Republican offices opening more readily to them.  If the leaders of HRC and NGLTF want access to the offices of the majority leaders on the House side of the Capitol, they’d do well to learn how to talk to Chris and Jimmy. (more…)

If, like me and the Gipper, you lean libertarian and believe the basic watchword for any political movement should be “freedom” (or “liberty”), you naturally cringe when you hear of an organization turning to the state to mandate “equality.”  While the ideal of equality is perhaps noble in concept, the historical record of the past century has shown that when the state seeks to promote equality, it does so at the expense of liberty (and oftentimes prosperity as well).

Conservative and libertarian political philosophers have long recognized the tension between the two ideals.  Laws to promote equality often nibble at our liberty.

This thought comes to mind every time I receive an e-mail from “Equality California” (EqCA) touting their legislative achievements.  Given how successful this Democratic group has been at lobbying the Golden State’s Democratic legislature over the years, you’d think that they would no longer need to push bills in Sacramento.  By now, that is, they should have passed enough laws to advance gay equality.

But, the laws keep coming.  EqCA mentioned seven in an e-mail earlier this month, four which the Governor signed, three which he vetoed.

Now, to be sure, some laws do indeed advance liberty (such as a bill downgrading “possession of an ounce or less” of marijuana “from a misdemeanor to an infraction.”)

Three days after receiving that electronic missive from EqCA, I received one from Log Cabin, heralding “pro-equality Republicans.” Four days later, they touted a candidate as advocated for equality while running on a “freedom-based platform”. Were they even aware of the contradictions between that supposed advocacy and his platform?

If Log Cabin wishes to be a genuinely Republican organization, it, like the GOP nationally, must understand what freedom means.  It would be nice if, instead of aping the watchword of the gay left, Log Cabin leaders could craft a real gay conservative agenda, one where the guiding principle is the same one which inspired the founders of our nation  – and our party:  freedom or liberty.

NB:  Tweaked the title to make it more concise.

I just read this email:

Log Cabin Republicans National Board of Directors to Meet in Washington, DC

(Washington, DC) – The Log Cabin Republicans National Board of Directors will convene in Washington, DC on September 22nd for a quarterly board meeting.

For further information, contact Christian Berle, cberle@logcabin.org.

I’m just wondering if Patrick Guerriero will be there.  Or Tim Gill?  Or George Soros?  I mean will the Leftist money men reveal their hands up the backsides of their “gay Republican” puppets?  Or will the show go on and the LCR-dues paying members just be told to “move along, nothing to see.”

Oh, I’m not going… I’ll be in New York City that weekend.  More interesting gathering and people.  No disguised Socialism-as-gay-Republican-group.

-Bruce (GayPatriot)

File this in the category of things we already know, but were waiting to have acknowledged.

Just after the 2004 after the ostensibly Republican organization he headed quite publicly acknowledged its refusal to endorse the Republican nominee for president, Patrick Guerriero refused to tell a Washington Blade reporter which candidate he picked in the general election matchup.  You think that a Republican, even one unhappy with George W. Bush, would have a lot of trouble backing the then-Democratic nominee, a Mr. John Kerry.  

He might have said he pinched his nose and voted Republican, given the alternative.

But, not the man who would soon go to work for Tim Gill!

Now, he admits what we already know.  In traveling to his native Bay State to “endorse Democrat Katherine Clark for State Senate“, our Patrick fesses up and says he’s left the GOP, changing his registration to Independent.

Does that make him an IINO?  Independent in Name Only.  Seems his real allegiance lies with the party of Tim Gill.  

Will be interesting to see how the current leadership of Log Cabin responds.

If Patrick Guerriero had truly been concerned about the integrity of the organization he headed in 2004, the Log Cabin Republicans, he would have resigned his position as president immediately after George W. Bush was re-elected to a second term in the White House in 2004.  Instead, he lingered for nearly two years.  Since he was so closely tied to Log Cabin’s non-endorsement of Bush in that election, his resignation would have cleared the decks and allowed the organization’s board to tap someone who did not have such bad blood with the then-Republican Administration in Washington.

With that in mind, when I first read that Clarke Cooper was elected head of Log Cabin in May, it struck me that the organization’s head had long-standing ties to the Bush family, even having served eight years, W’s entire tenure, in that good man’s Administration.  It was as if his appointment was a tacit acknowledgment that the organization had erred in 2004.

I met Clarke Cooper last night at a meeting of the Los Angeles chapter of Log Cabin — at which gathering congressional candidate Mattie Fein was also present (more on that anon) — and was reasonably impressed.  Time will only tell if he can show a greater commitment to building the GOP than did the first two executive directors of the organization.  In his speech he pretty much said all the right things; he was willing to listen to some of the criticisms I had leveled against the organization when I approached him after his talk.  While in the manner of his distingished predecessor, Patrick Sammon, he was open to criticism, he did seem a tad defensive at times.

I was impressed that he said log Cabin need to “resynchronize” with the GOP.  He even called the organization a GOP auxiliary.  Thanks to his Bush connections, he was able to secure meetings at the RNC.  He indicated that in 2010, that process of resynchronization should be relatively easy, given that all conservatives are “on the same page” with a focus on jobs and the economy, standing up to the big-spending policies of the incumbent Administration. (more…)

One reason the headline Log Cabin v. USA so struck me is that in nearly emptying all my e-mail boxes these past few days, I’ve been struck by the absence of independent thinking among gay organizations in coming up with “solutions” to the problems and difficulties gay people face in contemporary society. And it seems that Log Cabin is no different.

Instead of considering how conservative ideas could benefit gay individuals, they have (all too often) simply deferred to the agenda of the various left-leaning national gay organizations on gay issues as if all gay people must back them because, well, these are the gay issues. And in almost every case (save for legislative repeal of Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell (DADT)), they back policies which either expand the size of the federal government (and, in some cases, state governments as well) and increase its scope. Or both.

Many of the leaders of Log Cabin have, like all too many Republicans, alas, not realized how much the world changed with the inauguration of Ronald Wilson Reagan now nearly thirty years ago. When he spoke these words, he indicated a new approach to addressing our nation’s problems (an approach which neither his vice president nor that future president’s son fully understood):

“In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.”

In fashioning a conservative approach to gay issues, gay Republicans should ponder those words. Do we really need more laws to address the issue at hand?  Or, would free-market reforms benefit gay people?

We first saw Log Cabin consider this approach at its national “convention” in 2005 when Chris Barron, then the Political Director of the organization, promoted then-President Bush’s proposed Social Security reforms, noting how they would particularly benefit gay people.  But, with Chris moving to GOProud, his new organization, in many ways, represents the Reagan “revolution” while his old one, in many ways, represents the old Republican guard. (more…)

Save for the bracketed word in the title, every word in quotation marks in the title above comes from an e-mail Log Cabin sent out to its list earlier this week.  Did they even consider how that sounded?

In the e-mail primarily a fundraising appeal, the organization discusses the court challenge it brought against Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell (DADT), “Log Cabin Republicans is proud to have brought this case, and is committed to fighting “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” on all three fronts – on Capitol Hill, within the executive branch, and through the courts.”

While I share their goals of overturning DADT, I don’t share their commitment to fighting this in all three branches of the federal government.  I’m concerned about the precedent this would set of having a federal court interfere in military policy, something the Constitution clearly delegates to the executive.  Recall that it was President Harry S Truman who desegregated the military.   And when President Bill Clinton punted on keeping his campaign promise in 1993, he agreed to legislative intervention.  Until he signed that bill, the president could have, with the stroke of a pen, repealed the ban.

Instead of bringing this suit in a court of law, Log Cabin should deploy its resources to lobbying wavering Republican Senators and to working with Service Members Legal Defense Network (SLDN) to push the Senate to move forward on repeal.

In a week when I find it tough to focus on the world of politics, much is happening in that realm.  A decision is expected imminently in the latest Prop 8 trial, this one held in a San Francisco federal court.  Should Judge Vaughn Walker decide that the courts can impose social change, watch for the legal drama to continue until this reaches the U.S. Supreme Court.  Expect further social divisions on gay marriage and further whining from gay activists, with little discussion of the meaning of the institution and why its benefits and responsibilities are good for married couples in general and gay people in particular.

With the Senator who stole Christmas now signed up to vote for the Democrats’ financial overhaul legislation, this 2,000-plus page bill is set for passage, further regulating the banking industry, providing additional paperwork responsibilities on small banks, is all but certain to pass.  This will discourage rather than encourage small banks from making loans to small businesses, the enterprises the most net new jobs, thus further delaying a real economic recovery.

(Take note of the bias in the AP article on Senator Nelson’s switch; they dub the liberal Nebraska Senator a “conservative Democrat“!)

Democratic Senate candidates traveled to Canada for political fundraisers while one poll shows my gal Carly Fiorina surging ahead of Barbara Boxer in the race for the U.S. Senate seat that that 28-year Washington veteran has held since the last days of the George H.W. Bush Administration.

Log Cabin’s suit to overturn Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell (DADT) gets a hearing in federal court.  This lawsuit causes us to question whether that ostensibly Republican organization understands conservative ideas and constitutional principles.  A conservative organization should be wary of setting precedents that would allow courts to second guess the executive and legislature on matters military.  (They are basically compounding the problem begun by Bill Clinton who, when trying to save his political skin back in 1993 (shortly after Mrs. Boxer first won election to the Senate), allowed the legislature to intervene on a matter the constitution clearly delegated to the president.)

A new poll shows that 6 in 10 Americans Lack Faith in Obama. (more…)

Every now and again, I get e-mails from readers asking if I agree with a post one of my co-bloggers has written.  Usually (but not always), I agree with what Bruce and Nick have to say, though sometimes I share their conclusions while questioning their tone.

A couple of readers asked me for my thoughts on Bruce’s recent posts on Log Cabin.  I agree that the Log Cabin of LA “tea bag” stunt was in poor taste.  While aware of it before Bruce blogged on it, I doubt I would have posted on it myself.  Yet, the more I think about the issue, the more I realize how right Bruce was to publicize this stunt — and criticize the LA group for staging it.

And here is why.

Ever since Log Cabin leapt onto the national (media) stage in 1992, the organization has taken for granted its loyalty to the GOP.  To be sure, those in the media portray them as loyal Republicans.  But, that is not how rank-and-file Republicans see them.  When, I, in 1997, founded the Log Cabin Republican Club of Northern Virginia, I found we had to prove our commitment to the party to convince our fellow partisans that we weren’t just using the label “Republican” as a means to gain access to the media and so use that platform to attack our fellow Republicans.  A Trojan horse as it were.

Republican leaders and activists in Northern Virginia were aware that the organization had refused to back George H.W. Bush’s re-election in 1992 and that the then-executive director repeatedly criticized Republicans in the news media.

What we saw in the 1990s continued into the 2000s.

Given the organization’s history, with past leaders badmouthing the GOP to the media and the organization very publicly refusing to endorse George W. Bush in 2004 (while muting their criticism of his Democratic opponent), Log Cabin today needs to do more to show its commitment to the GOP.  Engaging in stunts which ally them more closely with the conservative-hating talking heads on MSNBC will not help them accomplish that goal.

One of the reasons I’ve been proud to support GOProud is that they have been making an effort to speak out not just on gay issues but on issues of concern to conservatives, very often showing how conservative policies benefit gay people.

Stunts like the tea bag toss will do little to ease concerns rank-and-file Republicans have about Log Cabin’s purpose.  And serve to strengthen the case for GOProud.

On full display at Los Angeles Gay Pride.

How dare they label themselves as a Republican organization.

-Bruce (GayPatriot)

Over the weekend, the Log Cabin Republican organization hit a new low — which I didn’t think was possible.  After this blog and others exposed LCR decomposing into a front organization for the leftist Tim Gill Foundation…  and after LCR’s former Executive Director left the place in financial ruin, even I didn’t think it could get worse.

It did this past weekend.

The Log Cabin Republicans of Los Angeles are holding a special event at this weekend’s gay pride festival in L.A.: A tea bag toss!

Contestants can buy a tea bag and win a prize if they toss it into the open “mouths” of three politicians: gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown (D), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Sarah Palin.

“We figured this year we ought to take it up a notch and do something that is engaging and somewhat amusing and shows that we can even laugh at ourselves,” Scott Schmidt, president of of Log Cabin-Los Angeles, told the San Francisco Chronicle.

He said he included Palin in the game in order to give the game a more bipartisan feel, telling the Chronicle that she had raised the sales tax when she was mayor of Wasilla, Alaska.

Thanks to Log Cabin, the ugly slur “teabagger” — first coined for the Tea Party by none other than Anderson Cooper — is being reinforced. And, to top it off… Log Cabin has the teabag going into Sarah Palin’s mouth.   Palin — the number one target for liberals is assailed in this bizarre stunt by a so-called Republican organization. 

Palin has gone through enough mindless attacks — why does an alleged Republican organization have to target her as well with a disgusting sexual slur?

Well, that’s stunt is sure to please crazy Andy Sullivan and get LCR’s Schmidt an invite to the next big Gay Lefty party.  Congrats, Scott.

Meantime, the new Log Cabin Executive Director was instrumental in helping defeat gay conservative Congressional candidate Matthew Berry.  Mark Ciavola at RightPride.org notes:

[T]hey [Log Cabin] supported the pro-choice, anti-gay Iraq War veteran Patrick Murray in Virginia’s 8^th Congressional District over the pro-life, conservative, former FCC lawyer Matthew Berry. Oh, did I mention that Berry is a gay conservative?  So why would Log Cabin support Murray, over a gay conservative who is pro-life, and stands up for state’s rights and the repeal of DADT? Simple: Log Cabin no longer has the best interests of the Gay Right at heart – and hasn’t for some time. They raised money for Murray, who won the primary against Berry last Tuesday. Good job R. Clarke Cooper!

It is no surprise that Cooper follows in the unseemly tradition of Patrick Guerriero.  My source on the Log Cabin board told me they chose Cooper under specific instructions from Tim Gill — who is the group’s major donor and who is one of the Gay Left’s most prolific fundraisers.

I have decided to go on a personal crusade against Log Cabin Republicans.  As a gay conservative — they should be “outed” completely as a left-wing fringe organization.  I have some specific actions in mind which I will reveal over the next few days.  Good, clean fun stuff.

-Bruce (GayPatriot)

[GP Ed. Note: In full disclosure, I am the Treasurer of the gay conservative group, GOProud.  This blog item reflects my own personal feelings and does not necessarily reflect the views of GOProud or any of its members.]

This is a cross-post from Mark Ciavola which was originally published at RightPride.org on June 11.

Back in April I wrote an article for GayConservative.org titled “The Cabin is On Fire,” outlining the downfall of the longest-running organization representing the Gay Right – the Log Cabin Republicans. I mentioned their spotty past of placating to liberal groups such as Human Rights Campaign, and their refusal to endorse the only Republican in the Presidential Election of 2004. I feel as though I laid out a pretty convincing case for their impending demise.

After fourteen months without an executive director, Log Cabin sent out a press release announcing their new E.D. as R. Clarke Cooper, a “former diplomat and veteran.” According to the release, Cooper is an “eight-year veteran of the George W. Bush Administration,” an administration Log Cabin opposed in 2004, even going so far as to attack Bush and Cheney in a series of web ads.

Does this spell new life for the lame-duck organization? Not quite. In fact, what I suspected was a lame-duck organization, is actually just lame.

This past week two very interesting news items came to light, which show Log Cabin’s true colors:

First, they supported the pro-choice, anti-gay Iraq War veteran Patrick Murray in Virginia’s 8^th Congressional District over the pro-life, conservative, former FCC lawyer Matthew Berry. Oh, did I mention that Berry is a gay conservative? Matthew Berry believes each state should choose its own same-sex marriage laws, and that Don’t Ask Don’t Tell should be repealed. These are reasons Murray used to sway voters away from the gay conservative. So why would Log Cabin support Murray, over a gay conservative who is pro-life, and stands up for state’s rights and the repeal of DADT? Simple: Log Cabin no longer has the best interests of the Gay Right at heart – and hasn’t for some time. They raised money for Murray, who won the primary against Berry last Tuesday. Good job R. Clarke Cooper!

The other tidbit pertains to Log Cabin’s plans for Gay Pride in Los Angeles. Their booth will include a “Tea Bag Toss,” where people can buy tea bags to throw through the “mouths” of three politicians: Jerry Brown, Democratic candidate for Governor; Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House; And…

Sarah Palin.

Why Sarah Palin, you ask? To give the game a more bipartisan feel. Not only is this a vulgar way to “do something that is engaging and somewhat amusing,” but clearly is intended to earn favor with the heavily liberal gay audience in L.A.

Still don’t think Log Cabin panders to liberals in the gay community? I say GUILTY as CHARGED.

Log Cabin Chairman Terry Hamilton and newly-appointed Executive Director R. Clarke Cooper need to take a good, long look in the mirror. Log Cabin used to be a place where right-of-center gays could find a home. Today, the organization is being driven into the ground by liberal appeasers who barely have any Republican values left.

It is time for all Gay Conservatives, Republicans and even Independents, to disavow this corrupt and misguided organization. Not only does it lie to its members to raise funds for its non-Republican activities, but it gives the REAL Gay Right a bad name.

Perhaps Terry Hamilton and R. Clarke Cooper should be the ones getting teabagged at Gay Pride this weekend.

*The views expressed in this blog are the author’s, and do not necessarily represent the views of Right Pride or GOProud.

As readers of this blog know, pro-life conservative (and openly-gay) Matthew Berry is running against pro-choice (and anti-gay) Patrick Murray in Virginia’s 8th Congressional District. With his campaign failing to gain traction, and with Berry becoming the consensus conservative choice to take on Jim Moran, Murray has in recent days decided to go negative with false claims about Matthew Berry’s positions on DADT and gay marriage. Murray has also attempted to flip-flop on abortion.

Indeed, Dave Weigel at the Washington Post covers the false anti-gay attacks today.

Whats most interesting is who is funding the campaign of the anti-gay Murray – none other than the national staff for the Log Cabin Republicans.

In fact, Log Cabin Republicans new executive director Clarke Cooper hosted a fundraiser for Murray at the end of March. Here is a video of the event. Clarke is introduced and he is standing by the other Log Cabin staffer Christian Berle.

An Open Secrets search also reveals that the newly minted Log Cabin ED also gave twice to Murray at the end of March.

Matthew Berry is the kind of candidate that all conservatives, but particularly gay conservatives, should be able to rally around. The decision by the national staff of Log Cabin to underwrite and support the campaign of his anti-gay opponent is outrageous. Maybe instead of writing PAC checks to support the campaigns of RINOs like Dede Scozzafava (the single largest recipient of Log Cabin’s PAC this year at $3,000), the national staff of this organization should support real conservatives like Matthew Berry.

Over at GayConservative.org, Mark has a post on the declining fortunes of the Log Cabin Republicans.  Interesting he doesn’t mention the last head of the organization, Patrick Sammon, who might have been able to save the group had his predecessor, Patrick Guerriero, not so depleted its coffer and destroyed its credibility among rank-and-file Republicans.  Or maybe Guerriero had just done the honorable thing and stepped down immediately after, his best efforts notwithstanding, George W. Bush won reelection in 2004.

Mark contends that, “Guerriero is single-handedly responsible for igniting the fire currently burning down the log cabin.”  Now, I don’t entirely agree, but agree he’s onto something.  The rot had already begun to set in before Guerriero took over.  He just made it worse.  He bent over backwards to repair the damaged relations between Log Cabin and the various gay organizations.

He didn’t understand the difference between being civil with (and keeping open lines of communication to) those groups and carrying water for them.  During the 2004 election, first the Democratic vice presidential nominee, then the presidential nominee himself gave Log Cabin leaders a chance to show that their non-endorsement of Bush really was a statement of neutrality in the presidential race.

When each candidate successively brought up the sexuality of then-Vice President’s daughter, instead of just chastising John Kerry and John Edwards, Guerriero’s Log Cabin devoted more space in their press release on the topic to trashing George W. Bush and Karl Rove.  It’s as if they saw their mission as attacking their fellow Republicans.  Why did they feel it incumbent upon themselves to trash their party in a release on the errors of the other party’s nominee?

It seems they were more eager to get media attention than to change the party.  For we all know how the media loves stories about Republican division.

Mark, however, contends that a gay GOP should work from within:

The fact is, when you claim to be a Republican organization, you should be supporting Republicans – especially when you are the only Republican organization representing gays. Even when Republican gays and Republican candidates don’t see eye to eye on LGBT issues, it is far better to work for change from within the party, than by attacking the party.

There’s more to Mark’s piece and I recommend you just read the whole thing.   (more…)