Sen. Larry Craig (R-Id.) decided to resign after being caught in an undercover sting in a Minnesota airport bathroom (a decision he is now reconsidering.) But if the GOP weren’t so steadfast about condemning homosexuality, Craig would have been able to express his sexuality in an appropriate and lawful way, instead of covertly propositioning a plainclothes police officer. The blame in this incident falls squarely on Craig and his fellow conservatives who seek to shame and criminalize homosexuality. The proposed Constitutional ban on same-sex marriage—which Craig supported—is exactly the kind of aggressively exclusionary legislation that marginalizes the gay community.
Republican bigotry is blatant when you compare the party’s handling of two of the summer’s biggest political sex scandals. While Senator David Vitter (R-La.) admitted to indiscretions of his own after Hustler magazine revealed that his phone number appeared on a client list kept by the infamous D.C. Madam’s prostitution ring, he chose not to resign and his fellow Republican Congressmen did not pressure him to do so.
But Craig, who pled guilty to his stall-side solicitations, drew harsh criticism from Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) and Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.), among others, eventually forcing Craig to suggest that he would resign. The differences in the way the party handled the two incidents proves that it’s not sex—even illicit sex—that the GOP can’t handle, it’s just gay sex. A public restroom may not be an appropriate location for sexual encounters, but picking someone up is not a crime, and certainly not a crime worth losing one’s job over.
It’s also notable that Craig refused to identify himself as a homosexual even after pleading guilty to the charges. This decision suggests the disgrace stems not from violating the law against lewd conduct, but rather the homosexual nature of the charges.
By overtly discriminating against gays and lesbians, conservatives have encouraged many people in the political arena to conceal their sexuality. This leads closeted individuals into more secretive and seedier situations which, when discovered, encourage the public to unfairly associate homosexuality with inappropriate behavior.
In order to spare itself the embarrassment of yet another scandal, the Republican Party needs to abandon its bigoted, hypocritical attitudes and accept the fact that many Americans, and yes, even some Republicans, are gay.
