Rob Smith: Is There A Place For Gays in the Republican Party?

During last week’s Turning Point USA “Culture War” event at Ohio State University, private questions about the increasing visibility of gay conservatives in the Donald Trump era came into full public view.

Aside from the vulgar provocations of a few bad-faith trolls, the underlying question from Christian conservatives in the movement is a valid one: is there a place for gays in the Republican party?

Since you’re reading my words on his eponymous website, we can point to Andrew Breitbart’s own take on the question of gay conservatives before his untimely death.

In 2011, the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) came under fire from religious groups due to their inclusion of gay conservative groups. In response, he helped to organize a party for the gay groups. Speaking on radio at the time, he said:

I am not endorsing gay marriage, I’m not endorsing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” I will be the harshest critic of the activist gay left, who I fear more than al-Qaida. But for these people not to exist in a two-party system, for you to tell them they’re not welcome in the big tent, I have a huge problem with that and I’m going to indulge in my all ’80s Depeche Mode, Cure, New Order fetish — and we’re going to have a big ‘ol gay party at CPAC.

Gays have always served in more peripheral functions in the party. One former staffer from a very prominent (and very heterosexual) Republican politician told me at one event that gays “practically ran” the office of this particular politician.

So on one hand, there’s absolutely a place for gays in the party. I mean, honestly, do you think a straight man is making Melania look that good all the time?

And, speaking of The White House, in a viral moment from a few weeks back, I shook the President’s hand, looked him right in the eyes, and said three words: “Gays For Trump!” His eyes lit up in wonder and excitement, undoubtedly seeing the possibility of millions of potential new voters.

So, yes, the Trump era is much different on the subject of gays than, say, the Romney era would have been (even typing those last three words made me shudder).

The increased visibility and prominence of people like us in the Trump era seems to be ruffling feathers within the party. So the question isn’t really if the party has a place for gays, but rather: does it have a place for very public and very visible gays like myself, or Guy Benson, or Scott Presler, or any number of openly gay conservatives doing good work right now?

To that, I say yes — with a few caveats. Gay conservatives are more sympathetic to the rights that Christians have to their deeply held biblical beliefs than our leftist counterparts, and even heterosexuals on the left. How else can you explain failed presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke’s insane idea to revoke the tax-exempt status of churches that refuse to perform gay marriages? That was just another bad idea that didn’t take off — much like his campaign, and I went on none other than Tucker Carlson Tonight to smack that one down.

There are some that believe that I, as a gay man, cannot have a relationship with God. What others think of my relationship with God is not a concern of mine. I’m open about that relationship because it disgusts me how the far-left seeks to paint all Evangelical Christians as monsters who seek to destroy all gay people, and I believe that is a leftist agenda to move people away from God when I personally believe we should all do what we can to be closer to Him.

It is no secret that I am legally married to a man. Whether you believe my marriage is relevant or not in the eyes of God is none of my business, but I like to believe if God really didn’t like my marriage, he would’ve done something to destroy my big day, and with the exception of a bartender that was drinking more than he was serving, it went off without a hitch!

Breitbart was absolutely right: the far-left gay activist wing of the Democratic Party is a threat to the moral foundation of our society. However, it’s important to separate even those gays and lesbians from the leftist LGBTQIAK+++ agenda, whom I call the “Alphabet Soup.”

The Alphabet Soup seeks to ‘transition’ young children, thinks tweens dancing for tips in a gay bar at 3AM is A-OK, and takes a particular interest in having adult drag queens have ‘story hour’ with children in public libraries. This particular wing of leftist insanity I’ve spoken out about many times, as have other prominent gay conservatives. The most terrifying thing about the far-left’s outsized interest in children is that gay men in particular have fought for decades to shed the “pedophile” stigma that has unfairly been ascribed to us, but the attention-starved degenerates of the far-left Alphabet Soup are rebuilding that stigma all over again, one child drag queen and “trans” 4 year old at a time.

I believe that gays and lesbians of any political leaning stay silent about these perversions at their own peril, and I believe that aside from relentlessly pointing out Democratic hypocrisy towards African-Americans and supporting my veteran community in any way I can, my job as a gay conservative is to speak out about the sexualization of children that is happening on the far left as loudly and forcefully as I can.

If there is any place for gay conservatives in the party, I believe that should be one of the top priorities. Even Evangelical Christians may agree with me on that.

Rob Smith is an Iraq War Veteran, Political Commentator, and Contributor with Turning Point USA. Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook @robsmithonline