Puhleeeeze. Conservative/GOP has consistently worked AGAINST equality and liberty for all for decades. Here, each new Legislative session brings new and usually successful attacks against gay people. It’s the same in other GOP controlled states and in Trump’s administration. The few GOP who support gay people(, usually due to family members, are ignored and ostracized.
If you are not aware of all these decades of attacks you are either brain-dead or willfully ignorant.
Instead of whinging about the Democrats/left etc, work within the “conservative” community to make real change. Go lobby the legislatures in Mississippi or Talibama etc.
posted by Tom Scharbach on
“We Exist”
Conservative homosexuals do exist. Republican candidates for President won a significant minority of the LGBT vote in all recent elections: Bush 25% (2000), Bush 23% (2004), McCain 27% (2008), Romney 22% (2012), Trump 14% (2016). That’s fine with me. LGBT voters are not a monolyth, never have been and should not be in the future.
What interests me more than “We Exist” is how the views of conservative homosexuals have evolved over the years.
In the 1990’s and early 2000’s, conservative homosexuals (e.g. LCR, Jon Rauch and others) generally supported equal treatment under the law for gays and lesbians, in marriage and other arenas. In more recent years, increasing numbers of conservative homosexuals have backed away from that support (e.g. GOProud’s denunciation of LCR as “too liberal”, Jon Rauch’s abandonment of marriage equality in favor of the “civil unions compromise, and similar).
After 2010, conservative homosexuals increasingly aligned with conservative Christians to advocate special, targeted, government-sanctioned discrimination against LGBT’s (e.g. carving out special exemptions to non-discrimination laws allow conservative Christians to discriminate in employment, public accommodations, health care and adoption, among others).
Most recently, both conservative homosexuals and conservative Christians seem to have thrown in with President Trump and the MAGA takeover of the Republican Party, with the result that there seems to be almost no daylight between conservative homosexuals and conservative Christians at this point, Richard Grennell’s recent effortless jump from the Trump administration to a gig on Jay Sekulow Live, a daily broadcast of The American Center for Law and Justice, being a case in point.
The conservative homosexual trajectory is not for me. I have been around too many years and fought too many battles with conservative Christians to align with them at this point, and I’m disappointed to see that conservative homosexuals have more-or-less entirely abandoned the fight with conservative Christians, to the extent that the fight ever existed within conservative homosexual thinking. I don’t have much in common with conservative homosexuals any longer; conservative homosexual support of the administration’s efforts to advance the conservative Christian agenda in the Supreme Court (e.g. the administration’s briefs arguing that the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as written, does not encompass sexual orientation) were the last straw for me.
I don’t know how the new conservative homosexual agenda is going to play out with LGBT voters in November.
This year, the Republican focus is likely to on racial division/strife, defacto resegregation of the suburbs, and “law and order”, so I don’t expect LGBT issues to be a significant factor in either Republican messaging or the election. I think that leaves the field open for conservative homosexuals to make the case that President Trump has largely fulfilled the conservative homosexual agenda — the military’s ban on transsexual service, rollback of LGBT rights under President Obama’s Executive Orders on employment and medical treatment, a full review of federal agency policies/practices to root out anti-Christian policies and practices, opposition to equal treatment of LGBT’s under state and federal employment and public accommodations non-discrimination laws, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and so on up and down the line.
If conservative homosexuals make the case that President Trump has responded to the conservative homosexual agenda in those areas, and do so clearly and forcefully, Republicans may be able to win back some or all of the conservative gays and lesbians who went missing in 2016, bringing the LGBT percentage for President Trump back toward the 20-25% that Republicans have traditionally enjoyed.
We’ll see what happens. It will be interesting.
posted by Jorge on
“It is time to be a proud LGBT conservative.”
*Growls* Oh hell, no. Pride is one of the seven deadly sins.
I don’t feel like graciously ignoring the omission of “or” in LGBT. I’m not a L, B, or T.
It’s called the Democratic party.
Oh, whatever. Let’s see what happens when I wear my rainbow MAGA hat today.
posted by Tom Scharbach on
Oh, whatever. Let’s see what happens when I wear my rainbow MAGA hat today.
So what happened yesterday? Did you get lots of hugs from Trump Nation?
You are really lucky to have been able to get the hat. The Trump Store offered the hats as a limited edition ($35) and they sold out within minutes, I understand. A must have item for conservative homosexuals …
Here’s a thought: Rainbow MAGA hats are a rare commodity, a small-run limited edition no longer sold in the Trump Store. So put the hat on eBay after the election. I’ll bet that some tassel-loafer will bid it up to $500 as an “Oh honey, I was there!” momento to kept, cherished and passed down through the generations.
posted by Jorge on
No. I wasn’t jumped, either.
However I did feel a discouraged mindset, a worry that everyone I pass by is staring at me. I get it the first few times whenever I wear something that calls me out. I’m not going to wear it again until I see the Black Lives Matter mask two more times.
I ordered seven hats total, including two rainbow. That way if anyone mugs me while I’m wearing one, I have extra “lives”. Only problem I encountered was the delivery took quite a long time. The rainbow hat has “Trump” on the back, every other hat I was very careful to order a version with no references to the president. I folded and stapled the hat so that his name isn’t visible.
posted by Jorge on
I think I was honked at, though. I can’t imagine why.
posted by Tom Scharbach on
“We Exist!
Well, kinda, anyway.
Eric Trump on Tuesday: “The LGBT community, they are incredible. And you should see how they come out in full force for my father every single day. I’m part of that community, and we love the man.”
Eric Trump on Wednesday: “To clarify, many of our close friends are part of the LGBT community, which was the intent of my statement.”
7 Comments for “‘We Exist’”
posted by Kosh III on
Puhleeeeze. Conservative/GOP has consistently worked AGAINST equality and liberty for all for decades. Here, each new Legislative session brings new and usually successful attacks against gay people. It’s the same in other GOP controlled states and in Trump’s administration. The few GOP who support gay people(, usually due to family members, are ignored and ostracized.
If you are not aware of all these decades of attacks you are either brain-dead or willfully ignorant.
Instead of whinging about the Democrats/left etc, work within the “conservative” community to make real change. Go lobby the legislatures in Mississippi or Talibama etc.
posted by Tom Scharbach on
“We Exist”
Conservative homosexuals do exist. Republican candidates for President won a significant minority of the LGBT vote in all recent elections: Bush 25% (2000), Bush 23% (2004), McCain 27% (2008), Romney 22% (2012), Trump 14% (2016). That’s fine with me. LGBT voters are not a monolyth, never have been and should not be in the future.
What interests me more than “We Exist” is how the views of conservative homosexuals have evolved over the years.
In the 1990’s and early 2000’s, conservative homosexuals (e.g. LCR, Jon Rauch and others) generally supported equal treatment under the law for gays and lesbians, in marriage and other arenas. In more recent years, increasing numbers of conservative homosexuals have backed away from that support (e.g. GOProud’s denunciation of LCR as “too liberal”, Jon Rauch’s abandonment of marriage equality in favor of the “civil unions compromise, and similar).
After 2010, conservative homosexuals increasingly aligned with conservative Christians to advocate special, targeted, government-sanctioned discrimination against LGBT’s (e.g. carving out special exemptions to non-discrimination laws allow conservative Christians to discriminate in employment, public accommodations, health care and adoption, among others).
Most recently, both conservative homosexuals and conservative Christians seem to have thrown in with President Trump and the MAGA takeover of the Republican Party, with the result that there seems to be almost no daylight between conservative homosexuals and conservative Christians at this point, Richard Grennell’s recent effortless jump from the Trump administration to a gig on Jay Sekulow Live, a daily broadcast of The American Center for Law and Justice, being a case in point.
The conservative homosexual trajectory is not for me. I have been around too many years and fought too many battles with conservative Christians to align with them at this point, and I’m disappointed to see that conservative homosexuals have more-or-less entirely abandoned the fight with conservative Christians, to the extent that the fight ever existed within conservative homosexual thinking. I don’t have much in common with conservative homosexuals any longer; conservative homosexual support of the administration’s efforts to advance the conservative Christian agenda in the Supreme Court (e.g. the administration’s briefs arguing that the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as written, does not encompass sexual orientation) were the last straw for me.
I don’t know how the new conservative homosexual agenda is going to play out with LGBT voters in November.
This year, the Republican focus is likely to on racial division/strife, defacto resegregation of the suburbs, and “law and order”, so I don’t expect LGBT issues to be a significant factor in either Republican messaging or the election. I think that leaves the field open for conservative homosexuals to make the case that President Trump has largely fulfilled the conservative homosexual agenda — the military’s ban on transsexual service, rollback of LGBT rights under President Obama’s Executive Orders on employment and medical treatment, a full review of federal agency policies/practices to root out anti-Christian policies and practices, opposition to equal treatment of LGBT’s under state and federal employment and public accommodations non-discrimination laws, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and so on up and down the line.
If conservative homosexuals make the case that President Trump has responded to the conservative homosexual agenda in those areas, and do so clearly and forcefully, Republicans may be able to win back some or all of the conservative gays and lesbians who went missing in 2016, bringing the LGBT percentage for President Trump back toward the 20-25% that Republicans have traditionally enjoyed.
We’ll see what happens. It will be interesting.
posted by Jorge on
“It is time to be a proud LGBT conservative.”
*Growls* Oh hell, no. Pride is one of the seven deadly sins.
I don’t feel like graciously ignoring the omission of “or” in LGBT. I’m not a L, B, or T.
It’s called the Democratic party.
Oh, whatever. Let’s see what happens when I wear my rainbow MAGA hat today.
posted by Tom Scharbach on
Oh, whatever. Let’s see what happens when I wear my rainbow MAGA hat today.
So what happened yesterday? Did you get lots of hugs from Trump Nation?
You are really lucky to have been able to get the hat. The Trump Store offered the hats as a limited edition ($35) and they sold out within minutes, I understand. A must have item for conservative homosexuals …
Here’s a thought: Rainbow MAGA hats are a rare commodity, a small-run limited edition no longer sold in the Trump Store. So put the hat on eBay after the election. I’ll bet that some tassel-loafer will bid it up to $500 as an “Oh honey, I was there!” momento to kept, cherished and passed down through the generations.
posted by Jorge on
No. I wasn’t jumped, either.
However I did feel a discouraged mindset, a worry that everyone I pass by is staring at me. I get it the first few times whenever I wear something that calls me out. I’m not going to wear it again until I see the Black Lives Matter mask two more times.
I ordered seven hats total, including two rainbow. That way if anyone mugs me while I’m wearing one, I have extra “lives”. Only problem I encountered was the delivery took quite a long time. The rainbow hat has “Trump” on the back, every other hat I was very careful to order a version with no references to the president. I folded and stapled the hat so that his name isn’t visible.
posted by Jorge on
I think I was honked at, though. I can’t imagine why.
posted by Tom Scharbach on
“We Exist!
Well, kinda, anyway.
Eric Trump on Tuesday: “The LGBT community, they are incredible. And you should see how they come out in full force for my father every single day. I’m part of that community, and we love the man.”
Eric Trump on Wednesday: “To clarify, many of our close friends are part of the LGBT community, which was the intent of my statement.”
I’m sure that Lara Lee is relieved.