I'll be honest - I'm no fan of Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell (pictured at right) because he is unable to disconnect his personal religtous views from the civil laws and in less than two (2) months in office has gone out of his way to tell GLBT Virginians that they are basically not wanted in their own home state. Thus, I find it only fitting that McDonnell is now being blamed for creating an atmosphere in Virginia that is welcoming to hate merchants like Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church loonies. Whether or not it's true, I hope McDonnell is learning rapidly that his anti-gay mindset is not gaining either him or the state positive media coverage other than perhaps on far right Christianist media. The irony, of course, is that Republican political consultants are recommending that other GOP candidates copy McDonnell's fraudulent claim that he's a moderate - even though he is rapidly showing his campaign to have been a calculated lie. Here are highlights from the Washington Post relative to how McDonnell keeps having his anti-gay agenda jump up and bite him in the ass:*
A state senator alleged today that actions by Gov. Bob McDonnell on gay rights issues have helped "create an atmosphere" that has led to planned protests tomorrow at the Virginia Holocaust Museum and other locations by members of the Westboro Baptist Church, the much-criticized Kansas church that stages protests at the funerals of U.S. soldiers and elsewhere against expansion of rights to homosexuals.
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Speaking at a news conference hosted this morning by Equality Virginia to highlight support for a bill that would extend legal protections against discrimination to gay state employees, Sen. A. Donald McEachin (D-Richmond) said he thinks there has been a substantive change for gay citizens in Virginia since McDonnell took office Jan. 16.
A state senator alleged today that actions by Gov. Bob McDonnell on gay rights issues have helped "create an atmosphere" that has led to planned protests tomorrow at the Virginia Holocaust Museum and other locations by members of the Westboro Baptist Church, the much-criticized Kansas church that stages protests at the funerals of U.S. soldiers and elsewhere against expansion of rights to homosexuals.
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Speaking at a news conference hosted this morning by Equality Virginia to highlight support for a bill that would extend legal protections against discrimination to gay state employees, Sen. A. Donald McEachin (D-Richmond) said he thinks there has been a substantive change for gay citizens in Virginia since McDonnell took office Jan. 16.
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"I think there is an atmosphere that's being created that has been regrettably caused by the McDonnell administration. It's been exacerbated by the issuance of the executive order, where what we have is we have so-called church members coming to Richmond tomorrow to protest and picket and say things about the Jewish community and the gay community," McEachin said.
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Asked afterward to confirm his belief that McDonnell's actions have helped spur the protests, McEachin said, "Absolutely, I do." And when told that the governor might be offended by that idea, McEachin said, "I'm offended by some of the things he's done."
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McEachin was joined by other legislators and representatives of a variety of groups, including the American Association of University Professors, the AARP and the Virginia Governmental Employees Association, which are pushing for the adoption of his bill [which would grant employment non-discrimination protections to state employees based on sexual orientation].
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At the news conference, the advocates noted that some in Maryland are now urging Northrop Grumman to reject Virginia as a site for its new headquarters because of the state's position on gay rights.
"I think there is an atmosphere that's being created that has been regrettably caused by the McDonnell administration. It's been exacerbated by the issuance of the executive order, where what we have is we have so-called church members coming to Richmond tomorrow to protest and picket and say things about the Jewish community and the gay community," McEachin said.
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Asked afterward to confirm his belief that McDonnell's actions have helped spur the protests, McEachin said, "Absolutely, I do." And when told that the governor might be offended by that idea, McEachin said, "I'm offended by some of the things he's done."
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McEachin was joined by other legislators and representatives of a variety of groups, including the American Association of University Professors, the AARP and the Virginia Governmental Employees Association, which are pushing for the adoption of his bill [which would grant employment non-discrimination protections to state employees based on sexual orientation].
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At the news conference, the advocates noted that some in Maryland are now urging Northrop Grumman to reject Virginia as a site for its new headquarters because of the state's position on gay rights.
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