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Edwards Goes Pro-Gay
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ShareFebruary 28, 2007 5:20 PM
ABC News' Jake Tapper Reports: Former Sen. John Edwards, D-NC, today jumped forward to applaud new legislation introduced in the House to lift the ban on gay and lesbian troops serving openly in the military.
Interestingly, though supporters of lifting the ban in Congress have turned to making a national security argument on the ban -- saying the stretched-thin military cannot afford to be firing able-bodied soldiers, let alone Arabic-speakers, for their lawful private conduct -- Edwards makes the argument entirely on "human rights" and "fairness" grounds.
“It is long past time to end the military’s ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy and to allow openly gay men and women to serve in the military," Edwards said in a statement released by his campaign. "It is critical to our national security that we have the best people in our military. Gay men and women have continually served our country with honor and bravery, and we should honor their commitment and never turn away anyone who is willing to serve their country because of their sexual orientation."
The gay community is an important one for Democratic primaries -- not just because of their voting strength in cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York, but because of their activism and, perhaps most importantly, their money.
Just as we've seen Democratic presidential hopefuls compete for the black vote -- and we will see them try to out-Israel each other soon enough -- here Mr. Edwards, an opponent of same sex marriage, tries to out-flank his rivals on gay and lesbian rights.
February 28, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (2)
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Out-flanking is a good thing. Just ask General Patton. He did it and kicked Nazi butt.
One way or another this will narrow-down the list of actual Democrat presidential candidates: Edwards will either be solidly in, or will be out. If he's in, one of those other "contenders" will be out of luck.
I predict Mr. Edwards will be the next Democratic presidental nominee.
There. I said it.
Posted by: GeorgeMBush | Feb 28, 2007 7:19:14 PM
In case you haven't been following, Edwards is the only candidate I have seen answer any and all questions put before him even when the answer may not be popular. We talk about wanting someone to be upfront and honest. This is a refreshing example of someone not skirting the issues and giving clear, definitive answers. If you get the chance, listen to him next time he's being interviewed and check out the difference between him and Clinton/Obama. Does anyone agree with me?
Posted by: TSnow | Feb 28, 2007 10:16:20 PM
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