Ken Mehlman, Former Chairman of the Republican National Committee and President Bush’s 2004 campaign manager is officially “out 0f the closet.” While it appears the “secret” was not much of a secret around the Beltway for quite some time, Mehlman is finally speaking out and in an exclusive interview with Marc Ambinder of Atlantic Online, he reflects upon his life at the center of the GOP as a man struggling with his sexuality.
“It’s a legitimate question and one I understand,” Mehlman said. “I can’t change the fact that I wasn’t in this place personally when I was in politics, and I genuinely regret that. It was very hard, personally.” He asks of those who doubt his sincerity: “If they can’t offer support, at least offer understanding.”
“What I do regret, and think a lot about, is that one of the things I talked a lot about in politics was how I tried to expand the party into neighborhoods where the message wasn’t always heard. I didn’t do this in the gay community at all.”
So what’s my take on this story? Frankly, I couldn’t give a damn if this wasn’t the biggest news story of the day today. I’d much rather be talking about the Economy, Afghanistan, Iraq, the non-existent/disavowed Obama War on Terror, or just about anything else, but this is what we have to work with folks.
I must admit that my knowledge of the career of Ken Mehlman is rather limited. I didn’t follow politics intimately enough early in the Bush years to be able to recall an accurate impression one way or the other of the man. Check out the McCain piece listed below if you need a taste of that – which I admittedly cannot offer.
I can however address this “issue” as it relates to the current hour in American politics. I have no doubt that this story will be a political football for any and all – save for a real news story emerging in the next 24 hours surpassing “Is Obama a Muslim?” or Sarah Palin’s next Tweet. The Left is and will continue to attack the story from all angles – as a sign that gay Republicans must hide their true beliefs, as a “Finally a Gay Republican” moment, or as anything that fits their political agenda. While some on the Right have been quick out of the gates, many will be slow to react to this story. I’m not one to speculate that many of my fellow Right-Wingers are homophobic, but I would venture to guess that many of them are simply at a loss for words.
For those in that position, I think the reason for the silence stems from the fact that Republican positions – and accordingly True Conservatism as an ideology - have allowed themselves to be hijacked by two entities – “traditional conservatives” that fail to understand the difference between being “conservative” in your personal life and being Conservative politically AND the Far Left who has succeeded in painting Conservative Republicans as “Anti-Gay.”
The two contributing, yet opposing, forces have left conservatives everywhere in a bit of an identity crisis on issues such as this. Many of them could give a damn about Mehlman’s sexuality, but they are too afraid to appear less-than-traditionally conservative by saying so. So, the result? They will remain silent.
Call it the slightly libertarian streak that occasionally comes out in me, but I could really care less about his – or anyone else’s for that matter – sexuality. So what if he’s gay? So what if he was gay and supported what the Left characterized as Anti-gay policies? Does that make him a hypocrite or provide evidence that he was ashamed of his true self? Of course not.
What it reflects is the ability to separate personal feelings or preferences from political ideology. It is in fact possible to oppose something politically that could benefit one personally. I know that’s a bit of a stretch in the world of self-interested and self-serving politics, but I think it could actually serve as a teachable moment, if viewed in the right context.
Again, I do not have intimate knowledge of Mehlman’s position or even his preferences. His support for Bush era policies may have been non-existent or simply a result of wanting to keep his job. It may have been a concerted effort to avoid being “outed.” Again, I don’t really care. My point is simple. There are; there have been; and there always will be gay people within the Republican Party and who consider themselves to be Conservative. They will never be accepted by those who assume Conservative means being “traditionally conservative”, but those people aren’t exactly the most accepting folks to begin with now are they?
As to the potential impact that this story will have on contemporary American politics, I am inclined to assume that it will be about as influential as Dan Quayle was to the first Bush’s Presidency – an occasional laughing point for the Left and something to be acknowledged but ignored from the Right. I fail to see how Mehlman will emerge as some great beacon of hope and optimism for conservative homosexuals or even homosexuals politically inclined generally. Just like many heterosexuals make their political decisions without even the slightest consideration of sexuality, I would venture to guess that many homosexuals are no more or less likely to support a Republican agenda than they were yesterday just because a political has-been is now out of the closet.
In a political world where elected officials seek public office running on campaigns of “family values” all too frequently get exposed for countless extramarital affairs, embezzlement, fraud, and a whole host of other forms of corruption, hypocrisy, and dereliction of duty; what is one ”Oh by the way I’m gay” story anyhow? Moving on…..
——-
That’s All I’ve Got on this one folks… Here’s a little perspective from the rest of the poliweb…
From the Gay Patriot
“My greatest fear for Mehlman is that he has to go through the often tortuous process of coming out in public. All too many on the left, the gay left most of all, will give him no quarter. They’ll lambaste him as a self-hating hypocrite, may even try to follow him around, possibly even accosting him in public.”
Allahpundit at HotAir offered this perspective:
Here’s a great post from Sister Toldja with a similar yet contrasting perspective:
And for a completely different perspective – as only The Other McCain can offer, have a look here…
Here’s just a taste:
Mehlman’s dramatic gesture is nothing but pure political theater. The only reason he “came out,” as the story makes clear, is so that he can now be a GOP drum major for the gay-rights agenda.
My ax to grind with Mehlman has nothing to do with his sexuality and everything to do with how he ran the White House Office of Political Affairs and the RNC in the Bush years. It was during the Bush years, with Karl Rove as deputy chief of staff and Mehlman as director of OPA (and later as RNC chairman), that the Republican Party began operating in a top-down fashion, with the smart guys in Washington calling all the shots, playing favorites in contested primaries and otherwise meddling in affairs that are properly the business of state parties and the GOP rank-and-file.
For all of Stacy’s (The Other McCain) typical flare for waxing controversial, he has really written a good piece here. At first glance, I thought it would become a prototype for Right-wing conservative drones who follow his lead on issues such as this to steal from in a well-articulated manner to mask their quietly passive aggressive and subtly bigoted points of view. And while it still may be used as such, it is an extremely well thought out piece and reveals that Stacey’s true disdain for Mehlman is derivative of little to nothing involving sexuality. Give it a read if you glossed over it.
A Little Blowback from the Left
Mehlman acknowledged regret that he remained closeted when he led the RNC between 2005 and 2007 — a time when, as The Atlantic’s Marc Ambinder noted, it was “stepping up its anti-gay activities.”
“The reason I wish that I had been in a different place then, as I am now, is I know the personal benefit of being comfortable with, and at peace with, an important part of your life,” Mehlman said. “Until you get there, it’s much harder. I’m very glad to be there.”
A Whole Series from Joe.My.God:
FLASHBACK: 21 States Banned Same-Sex Marriage During Mehlman’s Reign
FLASHBACK: Mehlman Endorses Evil Homophobe Rick Santorum
Bill Maher Back in 2006 – Outing Mehlman
Bill Maher outs Ken Mehlman on CNN
Uploaded by BadKitty. – Watch the latest news videos.
Via Memeorandum:
I think you should change the name of your site to Gay Patriot 2.0. You have a soft spot for the same-gendered crowd dont you T? Haaaaaaaha.