In addition to labeling conservatives and Republicans
“anti-woman” (for opposing government-mandated free contraception),
“anti-black” and “anti-Hispanic” (for advocating photo identification for
voting), and “anti-science” (for skepticism regarding the belief that man-made
carbon emissions will destroy much of the planet), Democrats now regularly
label Republicans “anti-gay” (for opposing same-sex marriage).
All these charges are demagogic. But when it comes to the
“anti-gay” charge, conservatives need to clarify to ourselves as much as to the
general public where we stand.
As an opponent of the most radical redefinition of
marriage in history (more radical than outlawing polygamy), I have argued for
the Defense of Marriage Act before Congress and have written and spoken on
behalf of amending state constitutions to define marriage as the union of one
man and one woman. I believe that the ultimate aim of the LGBT movement and the
rest of the cultural Left is nothing less than to end gender distinctions.
But I am not anti-gay. Proponents of same-sex marriage
may conflate opposition to same-sex marriage with being anti-gay. But
conservatives must not.
Those of us who fear the consequences of redefining
marriage — asking children if they hope to marry a boy or a girl when they get
older, banning religious adoption agencies from placing children first with a
married man and woman, denying the importance of both sexes in making families,
choosing boys to be high-school prom queens and girls to be high-school prom
kings, and much more — must make it clear that we regard homosexuals as fellow
human beings created in God’s image just as heterosexuals are.
This issue has most recently arisen with regard to
Richard Grenell, a foreign-policy aide to Mitt Romney, who resigned shortly
after his appointment. It is not yet clear why he resigned, but many assume
that he did so because he is a gay man who is an outspoken proponent of
same-sex marriage and, as such, not a good fit for the Romney campaign.
The Grenell case notwithstanding, no conservative should
oppose a competent gay serving in a Republican administration so long as the
person shares the values of the Republican party. Even support for same-sex
marriage should not necessarily rule someone out of a leadership position in
the Republican party. Former U.N. ambassador John Bolton supports same-sex
marriage, and he is, for good reason, a hero to conservatives (although I could
not back anyone for president who supported redefining marriage).
Only if a person is an outspoken advocate of same-sex
marriage would he or she, whether homosexual or heterosexual, be a poor choice
for a high position in a Republican administration — just as an outspoken
defender of non–medically necessary
abortion would be.
Conservatives must object to values, not to individuals.
As it happens, there are far more gays who hold
conservative values than many gay activists — or conservatives — realize. And
we should embrace these people. Being gay does not automatically mean that one
is on the left, and conservatives should not make that assumption. Otherwise,
we risk pushing gay conservatives leftward.
Conservatives have to be true to social as well as economic conservatism. But there is no reason why a gay should not be a conservative.
I am close to a gay man — and his partner — who lives in
the heart of San Francisco. This man is a major fundraiser for Republican
candidates. And given his homosexuality and where he lives, his Republican
activism is courageous. He should be regarded as a major asset to the
conservative cause.
It is the gay Left that argues that every gay person must
think like a leftist. Conservatives should not help these leftist activists by
objecting to gays holding positions of influence in the conservative political
arena. I am not arguing that the Romney campaign should have retained Richard
Grenell. I am arguing that Mitt Romney was right when he told Fox News last
week that his campaign hires people “not based upon their ethnicity, or their
sexual preference or their gender, but upon their capability.”
This is not only the right moral position; it is also the
right political position. We have a much better chance to win young and
independent voters whenever we show in word and deed that Democrats and others
on the left are engaging in smears when they accuse conservatives and
Republicans of being anti-woman, anti-minority, or anti-gay.
A gay person who believes in the American Trinity —
Liberty, In God We Trust, and E Pluribus Unum — and who believe in small
government, in American exceptionalism, and in the need for America to be the
strongest military and economic power in the world is one of us. And we should
embrace him as such.
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