April 23, 2015
Unbiased Political News
According to Rubio for President Executive Director Gregory Angelo, Rubio and his staff have been courting the Log Cabin Republicans, even holding quarterly meetings with the gay conservative group “going back some time.” The meetings have been to discuss legislation, issues and opportunities to “partner on,” Angelo said.
Rubio’s desire to “get in bed” with gay Republicans is a strategic, albeit risky move as he considers his potential electoral path to the presidency. The senator recognizes that the Republican party will struggle to win the White House in 2016 if it relies solely on the support of socially conservative voters. Therefore, branching out to find common ground among fringe GOP groups — even gay ones — will be essential for any electoral success.
So, how exactly does a staunchly conservative, anti-gay rights, anti-gay marriage candidate like Rubio rally for and receive the full backing and support of the gay members of his party? It’s a delicate dance that Rubio is tediously 2-stepping his way through.
In recent weeks, Rubio has taken to dialing down the anti-gay rhetoric he is known for, saying he would attend a gay wedding of a loved one. He even surprised everyone during an interview on CBS’s “Face the Nation” last Sunday, saying he believed “that sexual preference is something that people are born with” and “is not a choice” for most people. Hmmm…
Although his broad-based comments might win him some votes in a general election, they have, not surprisingly, already begun to antagonize the conservative Republican base he needs to win the nomination.
Unbiased Political News
“To the right it sounds mealy mouthed, and to the left sounds patronizing,” Martin Cothran, a senior policy analyst for the socially conservative Family Foundation of Kentucky said of Rubio’s words.
“There’s a lot to like about Marco Rubio,” said Bob Vander Plaats, the head of The Family Leader in Iowa, whose endorsement is coveted by many Republican presidential hopefuls each election cycle. However, Vander Plaats made it clear he is waiting to hear specific strategies from Rubio and all the Republican candidates on how they intend to fight gay marriage and the overall gay agenda. “Any attempts to straddle the issue would be a problem for me,” Vander Plaats said.
According to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll among likely Republican primary voters, 68% oppose gay marriage, however, 49% of Republicans aged 18 to 29 support same-sex marriage, while 41% oppose it and 10% are undecided.
“It would be a very stupid move, in my opinion, politically for the party or the candidates to hold onto opposition to gay marriage,” said Pat Brady, a former chairman of the Illinois Republican party.
How Sen. Rubio will maintain the ultra-conservative and extremely anti-gay Republican base, while appeasing gay Republican voters to secure their votes, will be a magic trick of epic proportions. Stay tuned…
Frankly, no sane, Repub politician (there are still a few) has a friggin clue as to just how deep the quicksand is they've waded into with that party. As usual, Repubs (like Rubio et al) have painted themselves into a very dark corner, not just on the issue of Marriage Equality…but on a host of other "SocCon" issues the Repub *base* still feels extremely passionate about. And these days, those right-wing extremist voters ain't to be mucked with! The deceptive tendency of Repub pols (like Marco Rubio) to try and run *game* on Repub *base* voters, _giving "tacit approval with one hand while denying legislative approval with the other" and trying not to draw "too much attention" to the slight-of-hand that We can all SEE_is just plain lunacy. You end up really p*ssing off those voters and then….well…..Look Out!! Christian Today: "Conservative evangelical leader investigates pro-gay tendencies of Republican candiates"… Read more »