Rick Perry’s campaign to win the Republican nomination is not doing so well. He’s described as “foundering in the polls,” and compared himself to Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow in terms of needing “a comeback in the fourth quarter,” although “obsession with Jesus” might also have been a meaningful connection to make. And in the grand tradition of conservative politicians whose actual policy ideas aren’t winning over voters, he’s falling back on taking one side in a cultural battle that socially conservative and religious voters feel strongly about, and claiming that he’ll protect America and the church from an imaginary gay menace. For instance, you may have heard about his campaign ad just before the Iowa debate, Strong? Aside from fostering a wealth of parody memes, it also didn’t do anything for him at all in the real world. In fact, Iowa citizens heckled him instead, asking “Why do you hate gay people so much?”
Now, it’s become clear Rick Perry has failed to impress even the last bastion of potential supporters — anti-gay bigots. After he’s risked, and lost, the regard and respect of everyone who doesn’t openly hate gay people, he’s finding that he hasn’t even managed to endear himself to the people who do. Last week, the American Family Association gave their endorsement to Newt Gingrich, and the Family Leader organization has just endorsed Rick Santorum. It appears that Rick Perry’s platform is unimpressive enough that even aggressive advertising of how far he’s willing to go to marginalize our community won’t win over the organizations who have made that one of their major goals. And he also seems to have underestimated the average Republican voter in terms of how much homophobia they bring to the ballot box:
At a historic hotel in Maquoketa, 61-year-old Len Ditch sat in the front row, wearing a Perry for President sticker. He said he liked Perry’s commercials in Iowa — especially one recommending that Congress be made part-time. He liked another one advocating prayer in schools but questioned why Perry had included a reference to gays serving openly in the military. “I don’t believe in the gay world. But I believe live and let live,” he said.
Rick Perry at least has one supporter left, although she doesn’t have socially conservative political currency in the same way that the American Family Association does, she does have a fierce Texas accent.
The candidate who did get the AFA’s nomination, Newt Gingrich, is taking a different tack when it comes to the gay community. While he’s not centering his campaign around oppressing us in a last-ditch effort to win over bigots, he’s also aware that he’s not our friend — and doesn’t really care to be. When asked how he would “engage with” voters for whom marriage equality is a central issue, Gingrich effectively shrugged and said he couldn’t.
I think, for those for whom the only issue that really matters is the definition of marriage, I won’t get their support, and I accept that that’s a reality. On the other hand, for those for whom it’s not the central issue in their life, if they care about job creation, if they care about national security, if they care about a better future for the country at large, then I think I’ll get their support.
Widely quoted (although not exactly correctly) as having said that gay voters should just support Obama, Gingrich does appear pretty unconcerned at the idea of losing the gay vote. That’s not really surprising — we make up a very small percentage of voters, and were likely voting Democrat anyways — but he also leaves room for the possibility that gay voters will “engage” with him, as long as marriage equality and/or the recognition of their full equality as citizens of the United States, which for some does in fact come as a shock. Far from basing an entire campaign on his willingness to throw gays under the bus, like Rick Perry, Gingrich claims that his platform will also benefit gay Americans, and seems to think there’s at least a possibility they might feel the same way. While that belief may not be borne out in an election, it seems to have appealed to the Log Cabin Republicans, who have taken offense that most news outlets are reporting virtually the opposite of Gingrich’s statement:
“In this political climate, the door is wide open for a strong Republican candidate to win the support of conservatives, independents and disillusioned Democrats – and there are those who are working hard to paint any and all Republicans as bigoted in a fear-mongering effort to shore up the president’s base.That is unfair and highly unfortunate for our community,”
Aside from Fred Karger, who most commentators have never really considered a contender, most Republican candidates have at best ignored gay voters and at worst, as with Perry, campaigned on a marked dislike of them. The current crop of GOP frontrunners have been called a “uniquely anti-gay field.” But Rick Perry and his Brokeback-esque jacket have been largely subject to derision and Tim Tebow jokes in recent weeks, while for better or for worse Newt Gingrich is considered one of the most likely contenders for the nomination. Michele Bachmann’s anti-gay remarks have done nothing but embarrass her in the eyes of voters. 2011 has been a year of progress in a lot of ways for the queer community; while “appealing to the Republican party” may not have been high on our list of priorities, it may be one of the more positive developments of the past few years. Especially depending on how the 2012 election goes. Gays may never be loved by the Republican party, but when it’s our healthcare and families at stake, wouldn’t it be better not to be feared and hated?
good.
nothing like completely selling out,
sacrificing your integrity,
making hate your platform,
and seeing it not work.
good job america
“You’re not telling the whole story, not all Republicans are bigoted!”
For sure, but that doesn’t change the fact that the people most likely to represent you are stone cold fuck nuts. There’s no lesser douchebag here. Krager doesn’t count, he stands the same chance as me of winning the republican nomination. The foreign gay sea lion.
I would vote for a foreign gay sea lion.
Except I’m also a foreign babygay fox, so….
I am hoping Sarah Palin slides into the race, as long as I can watch her with the sound off.
“I don’t believe in the gay world. But I believe live and let live,” he said.
There’s a gay WORLD? and nobody told me???
is it like this? please let it be exactly like this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBmlNfXPTb4
I’m going to run a campaign based entirely on my love of cheese. I think it will be a success.
Vote me for President in 2012, I love cheese!
i’ll be your campaign manager. pizza and brie for everyone!
There is no scientific evidence to prove any of the cross related bogus elements of christianity and other religions. Our early human ancestors; on this earth … go back more than 6 million years … 5,996,000 years before the Greeks, Romans and the Jews. Christianity is basically a 2012 year old fictional cult.
In the year 300 AD when Emperor Constantine, who to some was the first pope; went on to fabricate & market Christianity – a fantasy – which turned out to be one of the most hateful & evil concoctions ever perpetrated on the world.
The evil writings in Leviticus 18:22 … against gays – depict: “P” … “priestly rules” & expanded by the pope; homophobes and religious frauds … to attack the gay community and never meant to apply to the public — but to priests. Leviticus was written long after Moses — 600BC.
The pope and churches fully aware that Leviticus 18:22 applies to priests only … refuse to remove this stigma … maliciously persecuting gays. Kids bullied into suicide …! Being black or left-handed or being gay is just as natural.
Wow, that’s a lot of ellipses.
“Our early human ancestors; on this earth … go back more than 6 million years … 5,996,000”
They did not. Who told you that and who told them that?
Rested assured you have no ideal what you are talking about.
Ok, your dates are a little off on the early human ancestors thing. There are Australopithecine bones from about 4 million years ago, so you’re right in that early hominids started showing up a few million years ago. The Homo Habilis showed up about 2 million years ago, and from them came the homo erectus, etc. Archaic homo sapiens don’t show up until about 250,000 years ago, and then progress into homo sapiens sapiens, or modern humans. Since you use the word “human” I’m gonna assume you do not mean hominids such as the Australopithecines which most people would say look more ape-like than what we would consider recognizably human, so you’re dates are rather off. If you are talking about the homo genus then you’re looking at about 2 million years ago, not 6 million.
(It is late and I got halfway through an anthropology major. You’re inaccuracies bugged me, sorry. Also, please note that all those dates are debatable by a few thousand years and you’ll likely find slightly differing dates for all of those, but those give you a general timeline.)
4 million years ago Lol like you would know. Get real.
Ah, ok I did make a mistake, the date is more like 3 million years ago. Teaches me to do late night research when half asleep. Yeah, Lucy, one of the more well known Australopithecine finds dates back to about 3.4 million years ago. Again, I’m talking about early hominids here, which might not be what you’d recognize as human ancestors. Also all these dates are based on rigorous and reliable dating methods including carbon dating, potassium argon dating, and a few others. There’s not a lot of guesswork in them at all. These dates are not pulled out of a hat at random I assure you.
It is a sometimes rare occurrence to fall in Love and to hold that person in your heart and be loved in return … it is something that should be celebrated! If it’s between two guys or two girls — all the better. It takes even more courage to defend that LOVE!
Isn’t it just like a republican to base a whole campaign on prejudice and bigotry? The poor dears. They just can’t help themselves.
Not every republican is a hateful bigot, but every hateful bigot in the whole damn land is a republican.
just like how not every republican is an idiot…
but every idiot i know is a republican.
Perhaps Perry is learning that there are some things that a gallon of white paint simply cannot conceal !
Fred Karger. I wish he had a chance. Besides his idea to lower the voting age and the fact he looks up to Ronald Regean, I dig the dude. As an Independent (though under-aged), I think I would vote for him over Obama.I really wish he had a chance.
I really like the beard in that Rick Perry ad. She has beautiful blond hair and a nice smile. I wish she’d stop guffing about “Christian” values, though.
Their story is a little too clean for a nasty stinking liberals to like.
Typo, now you morons have something to work with.