Taliban Bob Reappoints Homophobe to Virginia Tech Board of Visitors

Taliban Bob McDonnell is continuing his quest against LGBT Virginians and has reappointed homophobic Roanoke attorney, John Rocovich to the Board of Visitors of Virginia Tech. No doubt Victoria Cobb, frigid ice queen of The Family Foundation will have an orgasm knowing that a proven gay-hater is back on the Tech governing board. During Rocovich's previous tenure in 2003, he led the board to revoke the University's prohibition against discrimination based on sexual orientation. The appointment is baffling in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez which ruled against a "Christian" university organization that wanted to discriminate against gays. I guess as a Regent Law grad, McDonnell doesn't grasp that Virginia IS bound by U.S. Supreme Court decisions (the utterly insane, Virginia AG Ken Kookinelli suffers from a similar affliction). Here are highlights from the Washington Post which quotes my good friend Mark Board, Chairman of Equality Virginia:
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McDonnell Thursday appointed John Rocovich, chairman of a Roanoke lawfirm, to the university's governing board. Rocovich had previously served on the board under Gov. Jim Gilmore (R), during a time when the board repealed the school's policy barring discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. That issue has returned to the forefront in recent months, after Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (R) wrote a letter to each public university, asking them to rescind such policies.
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The universities have responded by reaffirming those policies, and McDonnell issued Executive Directive No. 1, prohibiting discrimination in the state workforce.
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Mark Board, chair of the Board of Equality Virginia, said the following about Rocovich's appointment in a statement: Equality Virginia is disappointed that the Governor would look to the past in making board appointments and choose to reappoint John Rocovich to the Virginia Tech board," said Mark Board, chairman of the group in a statement today. "During Mr. Rocovich's tenure as Rector of the VA Tech Board in 2003, he led the board to revoke the University's commitment to affirmative action and to repeal the University's prohibition against discrimination based on sexual orientation. When his term expired, Governor Warner replaced him on the Board, and the new board reversed these actions. Given this past history, the Governor's decision to reappoint Mr. Rocovich to the Tech Board sends a negative message to the Hokie nation about the sincerity of the Governor's commitment to the enforcement of his executive directive #1 and his commitment to ensure Tech's GLBT employees and students are protected from discrimination.