Romney To Deliver Commencement At Anti-Gay Liberty University

By Igor Volsky/Think Progress

Mitt Romney — who at an earlier point in his career hadpromised to advance the equality of gay and lesbian people — isscheduled to deliver the Commencement address at Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University on May 12, an Evangelical Christian college that refuses to recognize people or ideas that don’t adhere to its social conservative worldview.

The university — founded by the late Rev. Jerry Falwell in 1971 — seeks to impress on its students a “commitment to the Christian life” that “leads people to Jesus Christ as the Lord of the universe and their own personal Savior” and forbids openly gay enrollees. Students are required to abide by a strict Code of Conduct, which prohibits them from engaging in “[n]on-marital sexual relations,” drinking, smoking, watching R-rated movies, dancing, cursing or hugging for longer than three seconds. In 2009, the school attracted controversy after it revoked its recognition of a Democratic club, because “[t]he Democratic Party platform is contrary to the mission of Liberty University and to Christian doctrine.” The school condemned the party for supporting abortion rights, “same-sex marriage, hate crimes, LGBT rights, and socialism.”

To that end, Liberty is heavily invested in the anti-gay and ex-gay movement. The schoolwithdrew from the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in 2010 to protest the inclusion of a gay rights group and hosted a one-day symposium to address the consequences of being gay. The event offered sessions on “[u]nderstanding Same-sex Attractions and Their Consequences” and “Homosexual Rights and First Amendment Freedoms: Can They Truly Coexist?” Liberty University law professors Matt Barber and Judith Reisman have also linked gay and lesbian rights to “the pedophile movement,” while the school’s affiliates describe marriage equality as a “rebellion against God” and claim that gay people are more likely to commit suicide because they know “what they are doing is unnatural, is wrong, [and] is immoral.”

Significantly, this isn’t the first time Romney has embraced conservative Christian Evangelicals in an effort to endear himself to Republican voters. In 2007, he addressed Regent University, the school founded by televangelist Pat Robertson.

Tim Pawlenty Says He Would Reinstate Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

By Igor Volsky

Right Wing Watch’s Kyle Mantyla points out that former governor and potential presidential contender Tim Pawlenty (R-MN) has moved to the right of Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) on his support for Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, telling anti-gay radio host Bryan Fischer yesterday that he would support reinstating the ban:

FISCHER: One last question, got about forty five seconds left, put you on the hot seat one more time: we just saw the ban on homosexual service in the military repealed, overturned. Conservatives will be working over the next couple of years to see that that ban is reinstated. If you become president in 2012, will you work to reinstate the prohibition on open homosexual service in the military? Would you sign such a prohibition if it got to your desk?

PAWLENTY: Bryan, I have been a public and repeat supporter of maintaining Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. There’s a lot of reasons for that, but if you look at how the combat commanders and the combat units feel about it, the results of those kinds of surveys were different than the ones that were mostly reported in the newspaper and that is something I think we need to pay attention to. But I have been a public supporter of maintaining Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and I would support reinstating it as well.

Watch it (starting 4:05):

Pawlenty’s position is surprising since even McCain — who led the Republican opposition to lifting the ban in the Senate — has said he would support implementation of repeal since it’s now the law of the land. “I think I have to do everything I can to make sure that the impact on the morale, retention, recruitment and battle effectiveness of the military is minimized as much as possible,” McCain said on Fox Business. “It is a law and I have to do whatever I can to help the men and women who are serving, particularly in combat, cope with this new situation. I will do everything I can to make it work.”

It’s also unclear how reinstating the policy would work operationally. Bringing back the policy would require gay servicemembers who come out after repeal is certified to suddenly go back into the closet or face discharge. Straight soldiers would also have to pretend they did not know about the sexual orientation of formerly-out gay members.

Arkansas School Board Member Wants ‘Fags’ To ‘Commit Suicide’ And To ‘Give Each Other AIDS And Die’

By Tanya Somanader Last week, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) asked people to “Go Purple” to call attention to the suicides of six teenagers who were victims of homophobic bullying. In response, a myriad of high-profile figures “jumped at the opportunity” to voice their support as part of YouTube’s “It Gets Better” campaign, including 40 Broadway actors, Google, Inc., Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and President Barack Obama. Yesterday, Obama’s Secretary of Education Arne Duncan sent new official guidelines on school-bullying to 15,000 school districts and 5,000

colleges and universities as a message that “bullying is not acceptable” and could violate federal civil rights laws.

Despite a chorus of support, GLAAD’s anti-bullying message is falling on deaf ears in Arkansas. Specifically, the ears of Arkansas District School board member Clint McCance. In response to GLAAD’s appeal to wear purple, McCance, an elected member of the Midland school board, unleashed a tirade of anti-gay bigotry on his facebook page. In a series of posts, McCance actually encourages “fags” and “queers” to kill themselves and says that, if his kids were gay, he’d “run them off“:

McCance wrote the following message on his Facebook page: “Seriously they want me to wear purple because five queers killed themselves. The only way im wearin it for them is if they all commit suicide. I cant believe the people of this world have gotten this stupid. We are honoring the fact that they sinned and killed thereselves because of their sin. REALLY PEOPLE.”

Initially, six people “liked” McCance’s message. He also received supportive comments, though some challenged his statement. A commenter wrote, “Because hatred is always right.” That led McCance to write, “No because being a fag doesn’t give you the right to ruin the rest of our lives. If you get easily offended by being called a fag then dont tell anyone you are a fag. Keep that shit to yourself. I dont care how people decide to live their lives. They dont bother me if they keep it to thereselves. It pisses me off though that we make a special purple fag day for them. I like that fags cant procreate. I also enjoy the fact that they often give each other aids and die. If you arent against it, you might as well be for it.”[...]

“I would disown my kids they were gay. They will not be welcome at my home or in my vicinity. I will absolutely run them off. Of course my kids will know better. My kids will have solid christian beliefs. See it infects everyone.”

While schools across the country are clamping down on this kind of bigotry, it is appalling that McCance, a school official, would champion this extreme level of hatred. Particularly when Arkansas enacted an anti-bullying law in 2003 to “prohibit bullying while on school property, at school-sponsored activities, and on school buses.” Not only does the law require school employees to report bullying to the principal, but it even calls on local school board to provide opportunities to “develop the knowledge and skills to prevent and respond” to acts of bullying. McCance’s comments, however, are the antithesis of knowledge.

Still, as the Daily Kos diarist Michael Hendricks notes, “the man is a disgusting individual but sadly he has the freedom to say what he says. He can not be fired. He is an elected official. Short of him resigning only the people of the community can fire him the next time he is up for re-election.” But, should efforts like the “Fire Clint McCance” facebook page raise enough awareness, Arkansans may have the last word.

Death Threats, Anti-Semitism, Homophobia Pervade Bill Schuette’s Campaign

by John Tramontana

LANSING – Bill Schuette’s dirty campaign tactics, which have centered around the ranting of an anti-Semitic woman, have resulted in a very serious death threat against Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton, Schuette’s opponent in the attorney general’s race.

The MIRS Capital newsletter reported Tuesday that Leyton received a death threat on his office answering machine last weekend from a man in Oakland County.

MIRS reported the man as saying: “Hey, David Leyton, I''m a Michigan resident. I think you''re a piece of (expletive) dirt. I hope you get murdered in a spectacularly horrible way that (expletive) makes your family (expletive) wish people didn''t exist. People like you. Because you''re a piece of (expletive) dirt. And If I ever (expletive) see you driving or walking, maybe I''ll (expletive) swerve your way and maybe I''ll (expletive) run you over. Because you''re a piece of (expletive) dirt. (Expletive).”

The threat comes just days after the Michigan Republican Party began airing an advertisement featuring Deb McIntosh attacking Leyton. The ad, the content of which has been debunked by police, gives Leyton’s phone number and asks viewers to call him.

McIntosh’s motivations for attacking Leyton became clearer after she posted the following statement Saturday on a message board at MLive.com: “[H]ow dare the FLINT URINAL not show me the respect to get my side of the story, instead of ONE SIDE,,,oh A JEWISH OWNED PAPER,,,,and lEYTON IS THE PRESIDENT OF THE JEWISH FEDERATION,,,,FLINT JOURNAL you should be ashamed of youself,,,I will never ever give you the time of day again ever......stay away from me, your as bad as the liars when you do not print both sides.”

McIntosh’s hatred appears to extend beyond Jewish people. The Michigan Messenger reported Tuesday that McIntosh made inflammatory remarks about gays in response to the Andrew Shirvell bullying case, saying in a blog post, “I am tired of hearing gay people whine and cry, they are such little girls, GROW UP AND BE A MAN.”

Leyton has been a leader in calling for the firing of Shirvell, an assistant attorney general, for stalking and harassing an openly gay University of Michigan student.

Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer is calling on Schuette and the Michigan Republican Party to pull the ad featuring McIntosh from the airwaves before tragedy strikes.

“The death threat against David Leyton is the result of the hate-filled campaign that Bill Schuette and the Republicans are running,” Brewer said. “Bill Schuette is running a false attack ad against David Leyton, which he knows to be untrue. It’s outrageous that Bill Schuette and the Republicans would continue running this dangerous ad, considering the woman in the ad, Deb McIntosh, is being motivated by her dislike of the Jewish people, gays and lesbians. Anti-Semitism and homophobia are bad enough — now there are people out there threatening to kill David Leyton, all thanks to Bill Schuette and the Michigan Republican Party.”

Coulter shocks O’Reilly by defending Paladino’s anti-gay remarks

By David Edwards

Despite a long history of anti-gay slurs, controversial pundit Ann Coulter has never really suffered any damage to her career. So it really shouldn't come as a surprise that she doesn't think homophobia is much of a big deal. Even if Fox News anchor Bill O'Reilly treated it as such.

New York gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino was forced to explain Monday after he told Orthodox Jewish leaders that children shouldn't be "brainwashed into thinking that homosexuality" is acceptable.

The Associated Press reported:

"That's not how God created us," Paladino said of being gay, "and that's not the example that we should be showing our children."

He added that children who later in life choose to marry people of the opposite sex and raise families would be "much better off and much more successful

"I don't want them to be brainwashed into thinking that homosexuality is an equally valid and successful option," he said.

Paladino made appearances on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox News the following morning but didn't apologize.

"I'm not a homophobic," he told ABC's George Stephanopolous.

"I have no reservations whatsoever about gays, only except for marriage," he said.

The candidate said that he disagreed with his opponent, Andrew Cuomo, who took his children to a gay pride parade.

"I was at one in Toronto one time. We stumbled on it, my wife and I. It wasn't pretty. It was a bunch of very extreme type people in bikini-type outfits grinding at each other and doing these gyrations and I certainly wouldn't let my young children see that," Paladino explained.

When pressed by Stephanopoulos, Paladino said that he wasn't sure if homosexuality was a choice.

"I've had difficulty with that," he said. "I believe that young people should not necessarily be exposed to that."

"You want to stick up for Paladino, do you?" Fox News' Bill O'Reilly asked Coulter Monday.

"I think someone on this network should [defend] this great warrior," Coulter said.

The conservative columnist noted that Paladino's audience was conservative Jewish leaders. "It's like being in Chicago. You say 'Go Cubs!'" she said.

"Did that help him [get votes]?" asked a shocked O'Reilly.

"Yeah, I think so," replied Coulter.

In the end, O'Reilly didn't buy Coulter's argument that Paladino's remarks were going to bolster his standing with voters.

"The bottom line on this is, I think everybody but you in the world agrees this isn't going to help the guy. He wants to win the election. He needs independents to come over," said O'Reilly.

"I just want everyone to know that we're fair and balanced and Coulter thinks that Carl Paladino was helped by that exposition. Everyone in the world thinks he wasn't."

Despite her past of making anti-gay remarks, Coulter was chosen to attend GOProud's Homocon 2010, a conference for conservative gays. But it cost her because World Net Daily dropped her from their "Taking Back America" conference.

In the spring of 2007, the Associated Press and other media outlets speculated that controversial conservative pundit Ann Coulter might get "blacklisted" after calling Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards a "faggot."

"Following her use of a gay slur about Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards this month during remarks to the Conservative Political Action Conference, some on TV are wondering whether her shelf life is expiring," AP Television Writer David Bauder wrote in a column titled "Has Ann Coulter reached her tipping point?"

Jump ahead three years later and rather than being banned, Coulter is now being hailed as the "Judy Garland of the right" by a gay Republican group, and getting crucified by some of the same folks who once lionized her for calling liberals "godless."

Mediaite's Frances Martel speculated about Coulter's motivation in defending Paladino:

Coulter doesn’t exactly have a clean record with gay slurs herself, and defending Paladino would make her quite the unique (read: attractive to the camera) commodity on cable news these days, so it isn’t completely shocking that she would take Paladino’s declaration that he wasn’t a homophobe at face value, if only to play devil’s advocate.

This video is from Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor, broadcast Oct. 11, 2010.

Do GOPers Taking Campaign Funds From DeMint Agree With His Extreme Views On Unmarried Women, Gays?

By Josh Dorner Sen. Jim DeMint (R-right wing douchebag), one of the most conservative members of the U.S. Senate, has made a name for himself by supporting tea party insurgents against establishment Republican candidates in this year’s hotly-contested primaries. For instance, he supported Rand Paul over Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) preferred candidate and endorsed Joe Miller over his own Senate colleague Lisa Murkowski in Alaska. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) called this behavior “a new and shocking development.” Some new and revealing comments DeMint made over the weekend are likely to cause even more division among Republicans, while also providing yet further evidence of the tea party’s hostile takeover of the GOP. Speaking to the “Greater Freedom Rally” on Saturday at a church in Spartanburg, SC, DeMint actually advocated for fewer basic freedoms for gays and unmarried women. According the Spartanburg Herald-Journal, DeMint “said if someone is openly homosexual, they shouldn’t be teaching in the classroom and he holds the same position on an unmarried woman who’s sleeping with her boyfriend — she shouldn’t be in the classroom.” These comments come just days after DeMint and Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) successfully blocked approval of a National Women’s History Museum, on the grounds that it unnecessarily duplicated existing local museums honoring quilters and cowgirls, and other sites such as a lilac garden in Washington state. While DeMint’s extreme statements and tea party endorsements have grabbed headlines, less well-known is the fact that two political action committees controlled by DeMint — MINT PAC and the Senate Conservatives Fund — are spending millions of dollars to elect GOP candidates from coast-to-coast. According to OpenSecrets.org and a ThinkProgress review of the most independent expenditure reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, DeMint’s PACs have lavished nearly $2 million on fifteen GOP candidates whose success or failure at the ballot box will determine which party controls the Senate in the 112th Congress. The beneficiaries of his largesse include: – Florida Senate candidate Marco Rubio: $406,250 – Colorado Senate candidate Ken Buck, who famously implored GOP primary voters to choose him over his rival Jane Norton because he “[doesn]’t wear high heels”: $359,654 – Nevada Senate candidate Sharron Angle, herself a former teacher: $337,903 – Utah Senate candidate Mike Lee: $251,945 – Alaska Senate candidate Joe Miller: $180,067 – Delaware Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell: $130,326 – Kentucky Senate candidate Rand Paul: $79,421 – Pennsylvania Senate candidate Pat Toomey: $68,796 – Wisconsin Senate candidate Ron Johnson: $51,858 – Washington Senate candidate Dino Rossi: $37,000 – South Dakota Senate candidate John Thune: $7,500 – North Carolina’s Richard Burr, Georgia’s Johnny Isakson, Ohio’s Rob Portman, and Indiana’s Dan Coats have each received $5,000. The Hill reported last Friday that DeMint plans to spend hundreds of thousands more on another round of television ads targeting his Democratic Senate colleagues Harry Reid (NV), Michael Bennet (CO), and Russ Feingold (WI) in order to further aid challengers Angle, Buck, and Johnson. One wonders whether these and other GOP candidates, including rumored 2012 hopeful Sen. John Thune (R-SD), will continue to accept money and support from their putative leader or whether they will disavow DeMint’s hateful and extreme attack on unmarried women and gays by returning his money and refusing any further support.

Michigan’s Gay-Bashing Assistant AG Andrew Shirvell Takes Leave Of Absence

By Ben Armbruster Michigan’s Assistant Attorney General Andrew Shirvell has gained national attention recently for his bizarre crusade to smear Chris Armstrong, an openly gay student assembly president at the University of Michigan. Shirvell operates a website dedicated solely to attacking Armstong’s “radical homosexual agenda” and has called the student “Satan’s representative” and a “privileged pervert.” Armstrong is even seeking a restraining order against Shirvell because of “several instances where Shirvell showed up at his home or other places he was at to protest against him.”

Shirvell told CNN host Anderson Cooper this week that he believes he has done nothing wrong. “I don’t have any hate in my body at all,” he said. And although the state’s Attorney General Mike Cox conceded that Shirvell is a “bully,” he refuses to discipline him. The Detroit News reported this morning that Cox had suspended Shirvell, but the paper has since pulled the story. Shirvell instead is reportedly taking a voluntary leave of absence:

Michigan Assistant Attorney General Andrew Shirvell has taken a voluntary leave of absence after generating national attention over a controversial blog that ridicules and denounces the University of Michigan’s student body president.

Joy Yearout, a spokeswoman for Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox, said this morning that media reports saying Cox suspended Shirvell were inaccurate.

“If I was still Attorney General and Andrew Shirvell worked for me, he would have already been fired,” Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) tweeted yesterday. In its article that has been pulled, the Detroit News reported that Cox fired back at Granholm for the tweet. “I don’t know why she’s so freaking irresponsible. … she went to Harvard Law School,” Cox said. “The civil service rules are a huge shield for free speech and she knows that.” (Legal experts have said that Cox has a case to dismiss Shirvell.)

Michigan Attorney General candidate David Leyton issued a statement calling on his opponent to join him in pushing Cox to reprimand Shirvell. “This type of conduct is unbecoming of the attorney general’s office,” he said. “I am asking Bill Schuette to set aside partisan politics and join me in demanding that Mike Cox fire his bullying lackey.” And as of this morning, nearly 9,000 Facebook users had joined the “Fire Andrew Shirvell” Facebook group.

Michigan AG Mike Cox Refuses To Discipline Deputy For Anti-Gay Hate Speech

By Ben Armbruster

For nearly six months, Michigan’s assistant attorney general Andrew Shirvell has been engaging in a bizarre internet campaign against Chris Armstrong, an openly gay student assembly president at the University of Michigan. Shirvell has attacked Armstrong’s “radical homosexual agenda” and has published posts on his blog “Chris Armstrong Watch” with photoshopped pictures of Armstrong with rainbow flags and swastikas. This week on CNN, Shirvell maintained the legitimacy of his campaign against Armstrong, saying, “I don’t have any hate in my body at all.”

CNN’s Anderson Cooper last night asked Shirvell’s boss, Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox, if Shirvell should be reprimanded in any way for his actions. “We have this thing called the First Amendment, which allows people to express what they think,” Cox said defending Shirvell.

Cooper noted that Cox has even “made Internet safety one of the main initiatives” of his department and has “done public service announcements” on cyber-bullying. Cox conceded that Shirvell is bullying Armstrong but added that his actions are protected by the First Amendment. When Cooper said that CNN legal analyst Jeffry Toobin had suggested that Cox’s reluctance to discipline Shirvell was because he’s a political ally, Cox attacked Toobin:

COX: Well, you know, Mr. Toobin reminds me of the old joke, “I’m not a lawyer, but I play one on TV,” because he clearly didn’t read any of the Supreme Court case that I cited for you.

COOPER: He’s a former federal prosecutor, but you’re saying politics has nothing to do with this?

COX: But that — you know, that doesn’t mean anything, Anderson. He’s not in the ring every day practicing law. He’s spending time on CNN. And it’s a pretty good gig. I wish I had it.

Watch the interview:

“I’m sorry he’s not a fan,” Toobin said later on the program, adding that “the direction the [Supreme] Court is moving is towards less and less free speech protection for stuff that is a heck of a lot less offensive than the stuff” coming from Shirvell. Noting that Shirvell had actually picketed outside Armstrong’s house, legal scholar Jonathan Turley said, “That comes very, very close to stalking. There could be civil liability here. And I think that that moves this away from free speech into conduct. And that does — that is a legitimate basis for discipline. ”

Update This post has been updated with the correct spelling of Michigan Assistant Attorney General Andrew Shirvell's surname.

Montana Tea Party Leader Fired For Advocating Violence Against Gays — But Is Backed By State GOP Candidate

By George Zornick Up until Sunday, Tim Ravndal was the president of the The Big Sky Tea Party Association, a prominent Montana Tea Party group. He was removed from that position, however, after apparently endorsing violence against gays and citing the 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard on his Facebook page.

On July 23, Ravndal declared his opposition to gay marriage in a Facebook status update. Another user replied: “I think fruits are decorative. Hang up where they can be seen and appreciated. Call Wyoming for display instructions.” Ravndal then responded: “Where can I get that Wyoming printed instruction manual?”

The post was deleted, but here is a screenshot of their exchange:

In 1998, University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard was beaten and tied to a fence post. Police said Shepard was attacked because he was gay. The almost inescapable conclusion is that Ravndal and the other user were referencing that murder, especially when the other user replies to Ravndal that he should be able to find Wyoming’s “manual” in newspaper archives “a bit over ten years” ago.

Ravndal now says he “never made the connection” between the Wyoming reference and Shepard’s murder. Nevertheless, the Big Sky Tea Party Association’s Board of Directors voted unanimously to remove him. However, the organization’s secretary, Kristi Allen-Gailushas — who is also a Republican candidate for Montana’s state senate — continues to back Ravndal, and defended his comments. On Sept. 3, she posted this to his Facebook page:

No matter what you guys say, Tim is a great American and Patriot. He does have a right to say what he wants. I know that he didn’t mean it, but in the heat of his anger with the ACLU might not have realized what he was saying. The people who are in the TEA party movement are called names all of the time. Racist, extreimest….you name it. Tolerance needs to be done on both sides especially the homosexual side. There isn’t any tolerance for people who have a different opinion than yours. If we say yes to gay marriage where does it stop? The people who want to have more than one spouse will be next and that is against the law. The definition of marriage is between a man and a woman, are we now going to change the definition?

Allen-Gailushas subsequently wrote on Facebook, “The Gay community wants a war….they’ve got one!!” Clarifying later, she added, “I didn’t mean a literal gun war, but a war of the truth and the hypocrisy they espouse.”

Ted Haggard To Open More Inclusive Church That Will Only Promote ‘Heterosexual Monogamous Relationships’

By Igor Volsky

Before resigning in disgrace after a three-year relationship with a male prostitute, Ted Haggard — the founder and former pastor of the New Life Church — was one of the Christian Right’s most powerful figures and a close confidante of the Bush White House. In 2006, Haggard — who railed against gays — admitted he was a “deceiver and a liar” and confessed to doing meth and engaging in “sexual immorality” with a male prostitute.

Moments ago, Haggard announced that he would be opening a new, more inclusive church, St. James, that would be open to “gay, straight, bi, tall, short” members and would focus on “helping other people going through the most difficult times of their lives.” “I just want to help people,” he said.

Asked if his new church would take a position on homosexuality, Haggard said “we will take positions.” “I’m going to teach the bible, chapter by chapter, verse by verse,” “but I don’t want to be a political activist.” Haggard explained that the church won’t advocate a specific public policy, but would instead “encourage” members to strive towards the ideal of biblical heterosexuality and monogamy:

HAGGARD: We are a church and I believe that God’s ideal plan for marriage is the union of a man and a woman in a heterosexual monogamous relationship, so those are the types of marriages we will do in our church. Now, as for society, working with that question, that is a totally different subject. But within the Church, that’s where we at St. James will be. [...]

Let me say something regarding your question regarding same-sex marriage. … I answered it by saying, ‘it is God’s ideal.’ It is also God’s ideal that people pray continually, it is God’s ideal that all of us have our weight under control. It is God’s ideal that mothers never get so frustrated and heart broken that they yell at their children. It is God’s ideal that there not be any abuse or poverty or shame in people’s lives. … God has ideals, that’s what we discuss. But earth is not heaven. And here on earth, sexuality is very complex and very confusing. Weight issues are a deep struggle that people go through, health issues, prayer issues, whether there is a God issue. … Inside the Church we discuss God’s ideals, but the discussion about public policy is a total separate discussion.

Watch the highlights:

While he has recently claimed that “I was never a religious right, hateful, anti-gay guy,” at his peak, Haggard catered to the Christian Right’s demonization of gays, calling homosexuality a “sin” and arguing, “We don’t have to debate about what we should think about homosexual activity, it’s written in the Bible.” Haggard also said that Western civilization could be devastated by same-sex marriage.

M.C.L Comment: I'm guessing Haggard thought people forgot about him getting busted with a male hooker doing meth.

Far Right Christian Group Warns That ‘Gay Blood’ Will Destroy Our Military If DADT Is Repealed

By Alex Seitz-Wald

The right has been girding for a fight to defend the military’s discriminatory “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) policy after the White House and some members of Congress reached an agreement this week that will likely repeal it. House Republicans are “preparing to mount a vigorous defense” of the policy, Sen. John McCain is threatening a filibuster, and right-wing Christian groups are pressuring conservative lawmakers to toe the party line.

Today, right-wing hate-monger Cliff Kincaid’s group America’s Survival launched a repulsive fear campaign against repeal, warning that “disease-tainted gay blood threatens our troops.” The group’s abhorrent video — and the 60 page report that accompanies it — present ludicrous stereotypes of gay men and women, going so far as to claim that “open and active homosexuals into the U.S. military could very well result in the spreading of deadly HIV-tainted blood throughout the ranks”:

Of course, all would-be soldiers undergo mandatory HIV screening and are not allowed to serve if they are found to be positive. Kincaid mentions this, but as Joe.My.God noted, the press release “cites the singular example of an HIV-positive soldier infecting a 17 year-old male he met in a chat room. Because if it happened ONCE out of all those millions of soldiers…”

Kincaid goes on to warn that repealing DADT will lead to “transgendered individuals who want to dress up as members of the opposite sex and would cry ‘discrimination’ if they are not allowed to do so.” Ignoring the fact that service members of both genders often wear identical uniforms, Kincaid’s only example of this allegedly real threat is a fictional character from the TV show MASH.

TPM notes that, in a separate bit of right-wing hate mongering, the Family Research Council is warning that repealing DADT “will turn the U.S. military into a terrifying free-rape zone” where straight service members “will be fellated in their sleep against their will” and commanders are powerless to resist.

Inhofe Says U.S. Soldiers Will Be Unwilling To Fight And Die For Their Gay Comrades

By Amanda Terkel

In an interview with American Family Association (AFA) radio yesterday, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) argued against repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT), arguing that basically, members of the U.S. military are too bigoted to be willing to fight and die for the “guy in the next foxhole” if that guy happens to be gay:

INHOFE: For those of us — and I’m one of them — who have gone through the military, gone through basic training, and you stop and think — it just doesn’t make any sense. Second of all, it’s just not working. You have women, men, then you have a third group to deal with, and they’re not equipped to do that.

And you know — you hear the stories all the time. A military guy — I happen to be Army, and Army and Marines always feel that when we’re out there, we’re not doing it for the flag or the country; we’re doing it for the guy in the next foxhole. And that would dramatically change that.

Watch it:

Inhofe shouldn’t assume that all members of the military are as homophobic as he is. A December 2006 survey of servicemembers who had served in Iraq or Afghanistan found that 73 percent of those polled were “comfortable with lesbians and gays.” The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network has reported that more than 500 U.S. soldiers are “out” to their colleagues and continue to serve. When Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Michael Mullen announced his personal belief that now is the time to repeal DADT, he cited the fact that he has served with gay comrades since 1968.

“I also believe that the great young men and women of our military can and would accommodate such a change,” he added, giving members of the military more credit than Inhofe did. “I never underestimate their ability to adapt.” (HT: Right Wing Watch

Right-wing group fears Sen. Graham’s ’stealth gayness’

By Stephen C. Webster According to the right-wing political action committee Americans for Legal Immigration (ALIPAC), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) needs to "make his homosexual lifestyle public knowledge in the interest of political integrity and national security."

Or, in the words of one blogger, Graham's "stealth gayness" might pose a danger to us all.

And it's not the first, second or even third time rumors about Graham's sexuality have surfaced. For the unmarried conservative senator who Jon Stewart once joked "looks like an old lesbian," the question has become increasingly thorny for him.

"I'm a tolerant person," ALIPAC leader William Gheen told a crowd in Greenville, South Carolina over the weekend. "I don't care about your private life, Lindsey, but as our U.S. Senator I need to figure out why you're trying to sell out your own countrymen and I need to be sure being gay isn't it."

The crowd of conservatives erupted into cheers

"I'm-a take some heat about that one on Monday," the speaker said, after suggesting that Congressman Barney Frank, an openly gay Democrat from Massachusetts, was "more honest" than Graham.

Approached by blogger Mike Stark in October, 2009 after the senator had read off anonymous insults about Supreme Court Justice Sonya Sotomayor during her confirmation hearing, Graham was not in the mood to comment on the rumors.

When GQ magazine asked a similar question in 2006, Graham reportedly dismissed the question and claimed he's just a "loner." A 2007 exploration of the topic by South Carolina's Charleston City Paper also came away inconclusive but noted that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has always seemed to be "Graham's Senate BFF."

Snark politics blog Wonkette wasn't so nice.

"Finally, some Wonkette agreement with the Greenville Tea Party of South Carolina: Why won’t unmarried ex-Sailor Lindsey Graham, whose super-gay voice and constant gayness with Joe Lieberman and Walnuts McCain make him seem gay, just tell us the truth about his sexual orientation?" they jeered. "Straight, or gay — which is it, Lindsey? (CAVEAT: it will only count as 'truth' if he says 'gay.')

"Ha ha ha no no no… we are just being dumb and mean. This speaker at the Greenville Tea Party event, though, is very seriously concerned that Lindsey Graham’s Stealth Gayness is causing him to (pretend to) work with Democrats on energy and immigration bills. IT’S NOT THAT HE’S HOMOPHOBIC THAT’S NOT WHAT HE’S… THAT’S JUST NOT IT, OKAY? He’s merely declaring that… if Lindsey Graham were gay… he wouldn’t vote for him? Eh? There, that should do it."

"[Graham] is the lone Republican who's trying to work with Democrats on immigration reform this year; Gheen appears to have decided that makes him fair game for, well, just about anything," reported Mike Madden, writing for Salon. "The insinuation that he's only supporting immigration reform because he's trying to keep something hidden is pretty slimy, though, even by the standards of ALIPAC."

Graham's office had not commented on ALIPAC's allegations at time of publication.

This video was published to YouTube by user 33ltHappens on April 18, 2010. A video of the complete speech is also available.

This video was shot by blogger Mike Stark, published to YouTube on Oct. 15, 2009.

This video is from Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

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