A Stitch in Haste

"There are just going to be some days when it's hard to be a gay Republican."
--A Gay Republican

Some more choice passages from the article:

Brian Bennett, a gay Republican political consultant ... was a longtime chief of staff to former Representative Robert K. Dornan, Republican of California, who regularly referred to gays as "Sodomites."

There are just going to be some days when it's hard to be a gay Republican...

Even though the G.O.P. fashions itself as "the party of Lincoln" and a promoter of tolerance, it is perceived as hostile by many gay men and lesbians.

"Perceived?" I think the reporter needs a new dictionary, because "perceived" is not quite the word he's looking for.

"You learn to compartmentalize really well," said one Republican strategist who, like many gay Republicans interviewed for this article, would talk only anonymously for fear of adversely affecting his career.

There are just going to be some days when it's hard to be a gay Republican. (Of course, "compartmentalization" is also not the correct word — everyone "compartmentalizes." The correct term is "become schizophrenic" (alternatively, "self-loathe" works too).

In contrast to what many view as the right's increasingly antigay rhetoric, members of both parties say there has been a growing tolerance for gays and lesbians within the Republican ranks. "There's been a change from 20 years ago when people used to be hyperconscious of staying in the closet," said Steve Elmendorf, an openly gay Democratic strategist who worked for former Representative Richard A. Gephardt, Democrat of Missouri. "Now there's more of an evolution to a 'don't ask, don't tell' rule."

Huh? Gay Republicans have gone from having to stay in the closet to, um, having to stay in the closet? That's what 20 years of "working from within" has gotten them?

One gay Republican campaign strategist said he feared that conservatives would "play to the base" and redouble their efforts to vilify homosexuals. "It's one of the places the party goes when it's in trouble," he said. "A lot of us are holding our breath to see how this plays out."

There are just going to be some days when it's hard to be a gay Republican.

More thoughts from Pam's House Blend.