LGBTQ news and entertainment
Attempting to prove his “conservative bona fides,” former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush answered directly when asked if he was evolving on same-sex marriage at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Friday:
“No. I believe in traditional marriage.”
Some rumors had been circling that Jeb might try to appear not an severe as his possible fellow candidates for the Republican presidential nomination.
He’s now answered that question.
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| Tim Miller of America Rising PAC |
According to Politico, Jeb Bush will name openly gay Tim Miller, executive director of America Rising PAC, as his top communications aide.
Miller, 33, worked on Sen. John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign, and was national press secretary of Jon Huntsman’s nascent 2012 presidential campaign. He has also served as a spokesman for the Republican National Committee.
I’ll be curious to see how the NRC jives with this seeing how the national platform is so anti-gay on so many issues.
Last year, Miller told National Journal that being openly gay and Republican hasn’t really affected his career. “Some told me to be prepared for it to be an issue in past political campaigns, but it never has,” he says. “A big takeaway for me as I’ve encountered political operatives who are worried that being open might have a negative impact on their career is that you don’t need to hide to be successful, and it wouldn’t be worth it, regardless.”
Thanks yall. Thrilled and honored to work for a great person with the right message –@JebBush. http://t.co/6iouJJh2uo
— Tim Miller (@Timodc) February 20, 2015
Charlie and CJ, two “high-tech bears” in Oregon, decided back in 2008 to buy the internet domain www.JebBushForPresident.com thinking that someday – SOMEDAY – that might be something someone would be interested in.
Flash forward to today, and here is Jeb Bush about to run for president.
But the Oregon bears aren’t looking to sell the domain for a high price profit. They plan to use the space to explain the need for LGBT rights.
And so, that is how they came to be featured on Rachel Maddow’s show last night.
The segment begins at the 11:15 mark below. If the player doesn’t work, click here.
With Jeb Bush’s impending decision of whether or not to run for president in 2016, Buzzfeed is on a research mission to better understand who this Bush man is.
They found this op-ed penned by Jeb during his first run for governor of Florida.
The Miami Herald
June 22, 1994 — WednesdayJEB BUSH: NO SPECIAL LEGAL STATUS FOR GAYS
Re the June 20 Herald editorial Bigotry and its mouthpieces about the gubernatorial candidates’ position on homosexuality and special legal rights for homosexuals: Homosexuality is wrong, but it is also wrong to discriminate against homosexuals in employment, housing, etc., solely on the basis of sexual preference. I have employed homosexuals and continue to do so. Therefore, I take vigorous exception to your characterization of me as a bigot.
However, I do not believe that government should create a new class of citizens with special legal rights.
It is disingenuous of you to write that “the governor must stand up for and represent all the people of the Sunshine State on all matters.” You imply that discrimination is always wrong, yet government and individual Floridians discriminate every day in innumerable ways. Government discriminates against bank robbers, drug dealers, litterbugs, and homeowners who repair their seawall without a permit, just to name a few. Yours is not a reasoned argument reflecting reality.
The governor — and the government — do not defend the conduct of every Floridian with equal verve and enthusiasm. Polluters, pedophiles, pornographers, drunk drivers, and developers without proper permits receive — and deserve — precious little representation or defense from their governor. The statement that the governor must stand up for all people on all matters is just silly.
The public policy question is whether homosexuals deserve special legal protection from otherwise legal, private acts of discrimination, which protections are not available to smokers, drinkers, children, redheads, Midwesterners, Democrats, veterans, nudists, etc. Or, to put it another way, should sodomy be elevated to the same constitutional status as race and religion? My answer is No. We have enough special categories, enough victims, without creating even more.
Jeb Bush
Coral Gables
A statement from a Bush spokesman said this:
“Gov. Bush believes that our society should have a culture of respect for all people, regardless of their differences, and that begins with preventing discrimination, including when it comes to sexual orientation.
“This opinion editorial from 20 years ago does not reflect Gov. Bush’s views now, nor would he use this terminology today.”
While he weigh his options for a 2016 presidential run, former governor of Florida Jeb Bush tells the Miami Herald, on the day that marriage equality comes to the state, that same-sex marriage should have been a “local decision:”
“It ought be a local decision. I mean, a state decision,” the former governor said Sunday in a brief interview. “The state decided. The people of the state decided. But it’s been overturned by the courts, I guess.”
UPDATE: Speaking to the New York Times today, Bush elaborated further regarding his thoughts on same-sex marriage in Florida:
“We live in a democracy, and regardless of our disagreements, we have to respect the rule of law,” he said. “I hope that we can show respect for the good people on all sides of the gay and lesbian marriage issue — including couples making lifetime commitments to each other who are seeking greater legal protections and those of us who believe marriage is a sacrament and want to safeguard religious liberty.”
Well, it certainly looks like former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will be running for president in 2016.
Today, he posted the following note on his personal Facebook page:
Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!
Like many of you, our family was blessed with the opportunity to gather together over the recent Thanksgiving holiday.
Columba and I are so proud of the wonderful adults our children have become, and we loved spending time with our three precious grandchildren.
We shared good food and watched a whole lot of football.
We also talked about the future of our nation. As a result of these conversations and thoughtful consideration of the kind of strong leadership I think America needs, I have decided to actively explore the possibility of running for President of the United States.
In January, I also plan to establish a Leadership PAC that will help me facilitate conversations with citizens across America to discuss the most critical challenges facing our exceptional nation. The PAC’s purpose will be to support leaders, ideas and policies that will expand opportunity and prosperity for all Americans.
In the coming months, I hope to visit with many of you and have a conversation about restoring the promise of America.
Best wishes to you and your families for a happy holiday season. I’ll be in touch soon.
Onward,
Jeb Bush
Former First Lady Barbara Bush took the other ladies of the Bush clan by surprise it seems when she stated on The Today Show today that “We’ve had enough Bushes” as President.
Check out the tweets that followed.
(via JMG)