Some gay political observers say they are encouraged by what they’re hearing from Democratic candidates John Edwards and Sen. Barack Obama. (Photo by Charles Dharapak/AP)
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JOSHUA LYNSEN
Friday, February 02, 2007
Just weeks into their presidential campaigns, former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) and Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) are impressing some political observers for their handling of gay rights issues.
Democratic National Committee GLBT Caucus Chair Rick Stafford and other politicos said Edwards and Obama have quickly outshined a crowded field of other White House hopefuls because they’re prepared to sincerely discuss gay issues.
Stafford said such genuineness is a key quality that many other candidates — including top Democratic contender Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) — have yet to demonstrate.
“When Obama and Edwards talk about our issues,” he said, “I think there’s a sense that they speak from their hearts and they’re willing to show that they’re not there yet, where I’m not sure that kind of speaking from the heart comes from Hillary.”
Edwards and Obama oppose same-sex marriage, but have said they want to expand gay civil rights.
Clinton also opposes marriage equality. In a surprise move last year, though, she said she wouldn’t fight efforts to pass a same-sex marriage law in New York. She has since avoided the topic of gay marriage. In an online chat on her campaign web site last week, Clinton reiterated her support for civil unions but made no mention of marriage rights.
Stafford said Clinton’s approach isn’t playing well among gay voters, who prefer the more “honest and sincere dialogue” that Edwards and Obama offer.
“I think Hillary’s got a lot of work to do reassuring LGBT voters where she is on issues for our community,” Stafford said. “I think sometimes she thinks of the political angle so much more than where her heart should be.”
In recent weeks, several contenders have joined the 2008 race. Republican entrants include Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas, former Arkansas Gov. Michael Huckabee, Rep. Duncan Hunter of California, while Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware has joined the Democratic contenders. Meanwhile, 2004 Democratic nominee Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) announced he would not run again.
McCain flip-flopping?
Political analysts said Clinton’s stance underscores the need for candidates to stake clear positions early on gay issues.
Clyde Wilcox, a Georgetown University professor and author of “The Politics of Gay Rights,” said Clinton’s ambiguity is doing her campaign more harm than good.
He said rather than talk around gay marriage, Clinton should use the same approach as Obama and Edwards.
“I think more Democrats need to say what Edwards says: ‘I’m not there yet, but this is something I’m mulling over,’” Wilcox said. “It’s really hard to attack someone with a position like that.”
Clinton, however, isn’t the only candidate afflicted by ambiguity.
Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese noted that Republican contender Sen. John McCain has alternately been quoted as saying he supports and opposes gay marriage.
“I think McCain is an interesting guy because he seems to struggle with where he might be personally on our issues, and where he feels he needs to be as a Republican presidential candidate,” he said. “My observation is that he’s going through this without really endearing himself to either side.”
 Wilcox said McCain, Clinton and others struggling to discuss certain gay issues could use the same tactic once employed by former President Bill Clinton.
“One of the things you saw with Bill Clinton was he’d say, ‘I’m against marriage, but,’ and then after the ‘but,’ he had a five-minute talk about things like employment non-discrimination,” Wilcox said. “It wasn’t him just quickly changing the subject — it was him beginning to embrace a set of issues and making an argument about equality.”
But observers agreed that candidates shouldn’t stop at outlining their views on gay issues; they also must indicate how important those issues are to them.
Stafford said this is especially important among the increasingly crowded field of Democratic contenders.
“Are our issues at the top of their concerns, the second tier or the low end?” he said. “Do we have candidates that say, ‘Yes, we should make these changes,’ or do we have candidates that say ‘We should fight hard to make these changes.’”
‘Wait-and-see’ mode
Such statements will be key not only to winning gay voters, but also to winning endorsements.
Solmonese said any HRC endorsement hinges on a candidate pledging their “strong commitment” to the organization’s goals.
“We’re going to hold the candidates to a high standard, but I think a way to get them to that high standard is to show them the way,” he said. “And the most important thing we can be doing right now is be having conversations with these campaigns — as we are — and try to move them in the direction that we want them to move in.”
Similarly, the gay partisan group Log Cabin Republicans endorses only party candidates who support equality for gays and lesbians. The group did not endorse President George Bush’s re-election campaign in 2004.
Patrick Sammon, the organization’s president, said no decision has yet been made for 2008.
“I think we’re still in a wait-and-see mode in terms of what the field looks like,” he said. “We’re still learning more about their positions on the issues and waiting to hear them articulate their viewpoints on issues about basic fairness.”
Wilcox agreed that articulation is essential as candidates navigate the 21 months remaining before Election Day.
He said the best contenders will “make a really strong argument for a series of [gay civil rights] policies that can pass, show it’s going to be a priority and frame it in ways where everyone can get behind it.”
Wilcox said Edwards and Obama already have started doing that, and other candidates must now catch up.
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