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News and commentary about the anti-gay lobbyOctober 1st, 2008
In what is believed to be the first time a Republican presidential nominee made himself available to the gay press, John McCain participated in a written interview with the Washington Blade this week in which he said he appreciated the Log Cabin Republicans’ endorsement and hopes that “gay and lesbian Americans will give full consideration to supporting me.”
McCain wrote about working with former Congressman Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) for 25 years. Kolbe was the first Republican Congressman to serve in the House as an openly gay man. McCain also spoke highly of former Tempe Mayor Neil Giuliano, who is now the executive director of GLAAD. Giuliano survived a recall election in 2001 over his sexual orientation. And McCain recalled giving the eulogy at Mark Bingham’s funeral. Bingham, a member of a San Francisco bay-area gay rugby team, died while bringing United Flight 93 down into a Pennsylvania cornfield on September 11, 2001. His actions along with others on the flight may have saved thousands of lives in Washington, D.C., which is believed to have been the hijackers’ target.
As for “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” McCain said:
I promise to give full consideration to any legislation that reaches my desk. On “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” I’m going to defer to our military commanders. So far they have told me it’s working. I’m willing to have the policy reviewed to make sure that’s the case, but at the end of the day, I’m going to rely on the commanders who will be impacted by a change in the law.
I wonder if this somewhat non-committal answer will be satisfactory to his conservative base. For some, merely promising to have the policy reviewed might be too much for them. For example, Tom Minnery, head of Focus On the Family Action sent out an email alert identifying “Out in the barracks: homosexuality hits the armed forces” as an alarming headline we might see if Obama were elected.
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Timothy Kincaid
October 1st, 2008
John McCain did not answer ever question as I would have wished.
However, I believe that this is the first time that a Republican presidential nominee has given a gay-specific interview to a gay magazine. And that is, by definition, progress.
Bill Ware
October 1st, 2008
Of course military commanders say it’s working. This just means that they are upholding the current law as one might expect any commander to do. Urg!
Bill Ware
October 1st, 2008
One of my fellow AF Academy graduates and Air Force pilot served during the Vietnam era, though not in Nam. Yet suppose there was a gay pilot serving in our combat unit there. Do you think that we would send him home for being gay leaving more missions for the rest of us to fly?
You’re out of your flipping mind if that’s what you think.
HappyCat
October 1st, 2008
Progress is not doing an interview with a LGBT magazine. He had to do it to keep the LCRs anergetic to go and vote for him. Progress would be admitting he is considering he might be wrong on LGBT issues and that we don’t deserve to be second class citizens. I think McCain knows right now he has to have the LCRs to have a chance at winning. If things change between now and Nov. 4 will see if he still feels the same way.
Ephilei
October 2nd, 2008
This sounds like more of a exercise in hypocrisy than progress. McCain has been in the military too long not to have an opinion: he’s either for DADT or against. He would either issue a bill or not. He would either veto a bill or not. And if he’s not going to tell us what he thinks, at least have the decency not to say anything at all. I might hate that most about politics: people trying to play both sides. (And Obama is not exempted.)
Ben in Oakland
October 2nd, 2008
I gave it my full consideration for about 30 seconds. The last time i voted for a Repub was in the late ’80’s– for Milton Marks. And john anderson in 1980. The only one i’ve seen since then that i could consider is bill Weld, and he isn’t running for anything.
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