News
Rhetoric on Gays Rekindles Republican Debate
2000 Presidential Race Factors in Discourse Raises Level of Discourse
by David Lightman, Washington Bureau Chief, Hartford Courant
June 30, 1998
When House Majority Leader Richard K. Armey, the House's second most
powerful figure, discussed Congress' agenda with reporters recently,
something new was on the usual tax-and-scandal menu.
What, the press wanted to know, did Armey, R-Texas, think of Senate
Majority Leader Trent Lott's comments about homosexuality?
It is a sin, Lott had said. "You should try to show them a way to deal
with that problem," the Mississippi Republican had told the "Armstrong Williams Show" on June 15, "just like alcohol... or sex addiction... or kleptomania."
Armey was armed for the question, saying he had discussed it earlier
that day with his wife.
"The Bible is very clear on this," Armey said. "Now, both myself and
Senator Lott believe very strongly in the Bible." He went on to say,
"I do not quarrel with the Bible on this subject."
The five-minute exchange was extraordinary: At a routine press
conference at the Capitol, a powerful Washington figure had reached into
the Bible to defend another powerful Washington figure.
Lott's brimstone -- and Armey's defense of it -- were a vivid reminder
that there's a serious split in the Republican Party, one that's now in
the open and causing some fiery debate.
A few days after Lott and Armey spoke, Rep. Christopher Shays, R- 4th
District, called a press conference, too, and called his colleagues'
views "mean-spirited."
At the office of the Log Cabin Republicans, the nation's largest GOP gay
and lesbian group, Executive Director Richard Tafel had other worries.
"It's wrong," he said, "and it will cost the party if it continues."
The Ambassador Nominee
Three events have triggered the latest outbursts: The race for the 2000
nomination has unofficially begun, and some in the party see questioning
gay rights as both useful and important; President Clinton in May issued
an order barring government discrimination on the basis of sexual
orientation; and the Senate is considering the nomination of James C.
Hormel, a gay San Francisco businessman, as ambassador to Luxembourg.
Some Republicans saw the Hormel nomination as particularly offensive.
A six-page, annotated fact sheet from the Family Research Council, a
pro-family Washington group, explained that because different
publications have touted Hormel as a family man, "it is necessary to
point out that his family values would not be considered exemplary by
most standards.
"After 10 years of 'carrying on clandestine affairs with men while he
was married,' he abandoned his wife and children to live the gay
lifestyle."
The distaste for Hormel has support on the Republican side of the
Senate, where Assistant Majority Leader Don Nickles, R-Okla., told "Fox
News Sunday" June 21 that Hormel "has promoted a lifestyle and
promoted it in a big way, in a way that is very offensive.
"One might have that lifestyle," Nickles said, "but if one promotes
it as acceptable behavior, I don't think [that person] should be
representative of this country."
Hormel has funded the James C. Hormel Gay and Lesbian Center of the San
Francisco Main Library, and the council has a tape of Hormel laughing at
the comedy of a troupe of male homosexuals dresssed as Catholic nuns.
"I don't think sexual preference is the issue. It's his
aggressiveness," said Sen. Robert C. Smith, R-N.H.
Attempts to reach James Van Buskirk, the center's director, were
unsuccessful. But a number of Republicans have protested the
Hormel-bashing, notably Sen. Alfonse M. D'Amato, R-N.Y., who urged Lott
to schedule a vote on Hormel as soon as possible.
'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'
Though President Clinton has been sympathetic to expanding homosexual
rights, some of his policies have sparked serious rifts.
In 1992, during his first campaign, Clinton promised to end the ban
against gay service members. Shortly after taking office, when
controversy erupted, he agreed to the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy,
which prohibits homosexual conduct but prevents recruits from being
asked if they are gay.
Gay rights advocates consider that an unsatisfactory solution.
But they still have found that Clinton and many Democrats generally set
a tolerant tone. In May, for instance, the president signed an executive
order barring discrimination based on sexual orientation in the federal
civilian workforce.
Contrast that, said Joseph S. Grabarz, Jr., executive director of the
Connecticut Civil Liberties Union, to the tone from the Republican top.
"When Lott and others say the things they do over and over again, it
makes it all right in many places to be hateful again," Grabarz said.
Gay rights groups realize Clinton will not put an enormous amount of
political weight behind gay rights; it's still a very touchy issue in
this country.
"Bill Clinton says the right things," Grabarz said, "but the place
where all these people end up is always in the middle."
Angling For 2000
"This is over the top," said Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn.
Equating homosexuality with kleptomania or repeatedly quoting the Bible
to condemn it risks offending people's sense of fairness, he said,
whether or not they back gay rights.
Many Republicans acknowledge that the views of Lott and others are red
meat for the GOP's strong conservative wing -- and pose a serious image
problem for the party.
Even so, some presidential candidates are using their views on
homosexuality to woo supporters in what is now a wide-open 2000
presidential nominating race.
Gary L. Bauer, the Family Research Council's president, is exploring a
White House bid, and is openly critical of homosexuality. Former
diplomat Alan Keyes, who is black, has said, "It is wrong to treat
sexual orientation like race, where discrimination is concerned." Other
possible candidates speak freely of promoting families, though they are
careful in answering questions about gay rights.
Sen. John Ashcroft, R-Mo., for instance, said, "I'm not in favor of
extending additional rights to homosexuals," but he quickly added,
"Homosexuals should have the same rights as others in the culture."
When Congress returns next week, there will be fresh efforts to derail
Hormel's nomination. And in the House, a strong coalition of
Republicans, including Majority Whip Tom DeLay, R-Texas, is seeking a
vote to bar any money from being spent to implement or enforce Clinton's
order.
"Why should someone's sex life be a reason for special status in our
government?" he asked.
The party could be in for a nerve- wracking debate. The floor leader for
the spending bill that will include DeLay's amendment is Rep. Jim Kolbe,
R-Ariz., the only openly gay Republican in the House. He opposes the
amendment.
These kinds of scenarios lead National Republican Party Chairman Jim
Nicholson to choose each word on this subject very carefully.
Should gays feel comfortable in the party? "By coming in, we want them
to adopt our agenda," he said. "Our agenda is strengthening families,
cutting taxes and balancing the budget."
Shays had a different interpretation of all the rhetoric. "This is
going to drive people out of the Republican Party," he said.