CONFUSED

Minnesota’s Only Gay Republican Won’t Vote for Gay Marriage Bill

12koering-300x370Showing the political fortitude to stand up for principles that’s the hallmark of the modern Republican party, openly gay Minnesota state Sen. Paul Koering has said that he will not vote for the Marriage and Family Protection Act, which would make the state’s marriage laws gender-neutral, telling local radio stationKLKS that “even though he’s gay, he will vote against the legislation because lawmakers have bigger fish to fry dealing with a budget deficit estimated at five to seven billion dollars.” Because you know, gays being able to spend money on their marriages wouldn’t help bolster the economy at all.


The Minnesota Independent writes:

“Koering came out in 2005 after voting against a constitutional amendment to ban civil unions and same-sex marriage pushed by then-State Sen. Michele Bachmann. He is one of very few openly gay elected Republicans in the United States and was re-elected by his conservative Brainerd-area constituents in 2006, despite a hard push by religious right activists to defeat him for his votes on gay rights.

When he came out in 2005, he was cautious about pushing hard for same-sex marriage, a position he still appears to hold.

“I think some of the gay activists will be upset with me for this, but sometimes I think an agenda is pushed so far and so fast that people have no alternative but to push back,” Koering told Raw Story at the time. “And I think that sometimes you have to move slowly.”

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