Image from The Daily Beast
I've often wondered what President Obama (and prominent Democrats in general) really think of gay people. I suspect that privately, they haven't got much of an issue with the subject. And publicly, they have to tap dance. They have to say enough of the "right things" to get us to vote for them, but they can't do too much, or they risk alienating potential voters who do have a problem with gay people.
In that way, gay people share an uncomfortable similarity within their primary party that evangelicals do in theirs. Once gay people help Democrats win office, they usually throw us a bone or two. Maybe even a juicy one. But the big stuff? Well, they'd like to pass that. . .it's the right thing to do. . .but now is not the time. Like with Don't Ask, Don't tell: it has to be studied for a year. What is to study? It's a black-or-white, no shades of gray, yes-or-no question. You either let the policy stand, or you get rid of it. And right now, they don't really want to move on it, or so it would appear.
Luckily, some Democrats have recently found their spines (or orb-like body parts), and seem to think that November be damned, they're going to get some stuff done. It's a good strategy, in my opinion. No matter what the Democrats do, they will be portrayed as Satan's minions by the right. So, they might as well do what we sent them there to do. And whether Democrats deem gay causes to be top-shelf issues or not, they can't really afford to dismiss the gay vote.
[Excerpt]
Pelosi calls for Obama to stop discharging gay servicemembers immediately
“We all look forward to the report on the review of the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy by the Defense Department. In the meantime, the Administration should immediately place a moratorium on dismissals under this policy until the review has been completed and Congress has acted. . .”
Read more at: AmericaBlog
