Groups on the religious right have gone
on the offensive against one of the leading lights in the
campaign for limited government and lower taxes-Grover Norquist,
the influential president of Americans for Tax Reform. Norquist's
crime: speaking at a Log Cabin fundraiser. Reports the Christian
right's CNSnews.com, Norquist
was the featured speaker at a fund-raising event for a group of homosexual Republicans last weekend. One pro-family leader called Norquist's appearance "an act of utter betrayal."
More than one religious right group is now demanding that he cease such activity across the board or risk their ongoing wrath (and a campaign to stymie his fundraising efforts).
This isn't the first LCR event Norquist has spoken at, and he has been explicit about saying that LCR and gay conservatives have a place in the large "leave us alone coalition" that he has been working to bring together. Which makes sense, since Norquist's single-minded focus is to achieve smaller government and lower taxes-a goal his group ostensibly shares with LCR.
Many Christian conservatives, however, don't seem to have a problem with big government, as long as it's used to force their moral code on the rest of the citizenry while channeling them large chunks of cash for their "faith based" social-welfare projects.
How all this plays out in Washington, where a group of Republican senators has risen in revolt over out-of-control spending, remains to be seen. But I believe the next presidential election cycle will be a real test: If Rudy Giuliani or John McCain (both of whom handily defeat Hillary in recent polls) do well running as gay-inclusive fiscal conservatives, it could be the first real opening to reclaim the GOP from the religious right in years.
McCain's unfortunate support for draconian limits on political
speech/campaign financing makes him anathema to many libertarians
and conservatives, but Rudy could be the man.