The Gay Old Party

April 15, 5:43 AMInternational LGBT Issues ExaminerKelvin Lynch

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           Yes, Virginia, there are gay Republicans

Yesterday, I reported that Meghan McCain was telling the GOP to go gay.  It seems she's not the only one.  Unlike unicorns and leprichauns, gay Republicans actually exist, and some of them believe the GOP can change to be more gay-inclusive.

According to a piece in today's Wall Street Journal, a new gay Republican group called GOProud is launching, which hopes to be the new voice for gay conservatives.

GOProud spokesman Jimmy LaSalvia said,

"There's a stereotype that if you're gay, you're liberal - and if you are a conservative, you're a bigot. Well, there are people like me who are gay and conservative, and we think it's important that we have a voice. Most issues that are defined as 'gay' issues have been defined by the left. We take a different approach."

LaSalvia gave healthcare as one example.  He said many gays prefer privatized healthcare to government-run, universal health care.  Christopher Barron, GOProud's chairman, pointed to abortion, saying though he himself is pro-choice, "I want pro-life gays to know they have a home here."

Barron said GOProud and the GOP might also find common ground on the issue of gay marriage.  Like most conservatives, Barron does not believe gay marriage should be a matter for the courts, but should be left to the American people and state legislatures.  Barron said, "Marriage is and always has been a state issue. The last thing I want is for some federal court to impose a tortured Roe v. Wade law on gay marriage that will make sure that this issue is never resolved."

GOProud acknowledges that their approach is not likely to satisfy Republicans who oppose gay marriage on the merits, but it is consistent with "a conservative respect for process".  LaSalvia said,

"It helps make possible a real conversation between people who share the same principles but operate from strong, opposing beliefs. Demonstrating common ground is just as important as saying it exists, and that's where we're different."

Interestingly enough, both LaSalvia and Barron are former officers of the Log Cabin Republicans, who just coincidentally happen to be holding their annual national convention this week in DC.  The WSJ says GOProud is the result of growing dissatisfaction among gay Republicans that the Log Cabin Republicans have drifted away from core conservatives values to the point they are indistinguishable from the left.

GOProud is obviously trying to steal the Log Cabin Republicans' thunder by becoming the new voice of gay conservatives.  I commend them on attempting to have a conversation with the GOP, but I'm skeptical of their true motives and not sure they can meet their own expectations.  Won't this bad blood between GOProud and the LCR simply work to further divide and weaken gay Republicans?