News
Republicans ignore LGBT issues at CPAC
Log Cabin criticizes organizers for exclusion from ‘outreach’ panel
Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-La.) speaking at the 2014 Conservative Political Action Conference. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Amid growing support for LGBT rights and following a string of court victories on marriage equality, high-profile Republican speakers avoided those subjects at the first day of the 2014 Conservative Political Action Conference.
Although many of the speakers have previously articulated their opposition to same-sex marriage — with some going as far as supporting a Federal Marriage Amendment — none took the opportunity while speaking before an estimated 8,500 conservatives in attendance to attack gay rights or made statements against the many recent judicial rulings in favor of marriage equality.
Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-La.) most closely approached LGBT issues when he defended his earlier statement supporting Phil Robertson of “Duck Dynasty” for controversial comments equating homosexuality to sinful behavior.
“But the reality is this: I stood up for their right to speak up and articulate their beliefs because I’m tired of the left,” Jindal said. “I’m tired of the left that claims they’re tolerant, claims they’re for diversity — and they are — they are tolerant and they are for diversity except for when you dare to disagree with them.”
Jindal made the reference to “Duck Dynasty” after criticizing the Obama administration for supposedly impinging on the religious liberties of Americans.
Another veiled reference to LGBT issues came up when Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) praised the restaurant chain Chick-fil-A — despite the company’s history of anti-gay donations and controversial comments in opposition to same-sex marriage by owner Dan Cathy.
You would have to look off stage at CPAC to find anti-LGBT sentiments. According to Right Wing Watch, the ultra-conservative Catholic group Tradition, Family, and Property distributed fliers at the event depicting the gay conservative group GOProud as a rainbow-colored beaver, explaining “Why GOProud Does Not Belong at CPAC.”
“Why is GOProud a welcomed and official guest at CPAC, when it advocates the legalization of same-sex ‘marriage,’ thus undermining the votes and dreams of millions of God-fearing Americans?” the flier reportedly says.
Ross Hemminger, co-director of GOProud who helped the group regain its guest status at CPAC after two years of being banned, responded to the flier succinctly.
“I think it’s hilarious,” Hemminger said. “We will proudly be the rainbow beavers.”
Even though no one on stage at CPAC took the opportunity to oppose LGBT rights, no one speaking on stage said anything in favor of them either.
That absence was most acute during a panel titled “Reaching Out: The Rest of the Story,” which looked at the ways the conservative movement can expand into minority groups.
On the panel, moderated by Revolvis Consulting partner Jason Roe, was Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Virginia Ed Gillespie; Robert Woodson, president of the Center for Neighborhood Enterprise and Elroy Sailor, CEO of J.C. Watts Companies.
Although the panel talked at length about the Republican Party entering the black and Latino communities to win over those heavily Democratic constituents, not once did any mention of LGBT outreach come up, nor was the word “gay” even uttered.
Gregory Angelo, executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans, attended CPAC as a guest and criticized the lack of LGBT outreach on the panel in an interview with the Blade.
“The silence is deafening there, as least as far as I’m concerned,” Angelo said. “This is a constituency that the conservative movement needs to reach out to and formally acknowledging that in some capacity is something I think it needs to do.”
In the wake of GOProud’s readmission as a guest to CPAC, Angelo penned an op-ed piece for The Daily Caller saying Log Cabin had sought “meaningful” participation at CPAC, such as a seat on the outreach panel, but was “rebuffed.” The American Conservation Union, which hosts CPAC, didn’t respond to a request for comment.
“Our ask was that we have a voice at the conference — that’s it — whether that was introducing speakers, introducing panelists, or being part of a panel,” Angelo said. “From our perspective, that was a simply non-controversial proposal that would have shown the country that gay conservatives are a meaningful part of this movement, in a vehicle that wasn’t all about ‘gay policy issues.'”
Log Cabin executive director Gregory Angelo (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
While remaining silent on LGBT issues, a number of prominent Republicans who spoke on stage at CPAC — many of whom are seen as Republican presidential contenders — addressed other relevant issues of the day, often attacking President Obama.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) talked about the importance of the “three-legged stool” of the conservative movement — social issues, fiscal issues and national security issues — that Republicans say led to Ronald Reagan’s wide victories during presidential elections in the 1980s.
“When we say that we’re pro-life, and that we’re proudly pro-life, that doesn’t mean that we’re pro-life just when that human being is in the womb,” Christie said. “It means we have to be in favor of an educational system that’s accountable, so that child, as they grow, can have a world-class education. It means that we have to be in favor of a society that creates opportunity and jobs for them — not one that has the government control what they think is good or fair in our society.”
Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) speaking at the 2014 Conservative Political Action Conference. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
Amid concern over Russia’s military incursion into Ukraine, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) derided the Obama administration for what he said was allowing the growth of totalitarian regimes in North Korea, Iran, China and Russia.
“All the problems of the world, all the conflicts of the world are being created by totalitarian regimes who are more interested in forcing people to do what they want them to do than truly achieving peace and prosperity and respect for the rights of others,” Rubio said.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), another rising Republican star, enumerated several policy items he wanted to achieve, including repeal of Obamacare and Dodd-Frank financial reform, abolition of the IRS and the establishment of the flat-tax.
Following his speech, Cruz took a shot at former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, whom many see as the likely Democratic presidential nominee in 2016, when asked about her candidacy.
“I’m less concerned about Hillary Clinton than I am about the direction this is country is going,” Cruz said. “We will have had eight years of a failed economic agenda that is resulting in a lack of leadership across the world. It is allowing Russia and China and Iran to expand their spheres of influence and make the world a much more dangerous place, and at home people are hurting. We’ve got the lowest labor force participation since 1978. Let me tell you, we can’t afford eight more years of this: Hillary Clinton would continue the failed Obama economic agenda.”
It should be noted Cruz is an opponent of marriage equality and has introduced in the Senate the State Defense Marriage Act, which would prohibit the federal government from recognizing same-sex unions in states where they’re illegal.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) speaking at CPAC 2014. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
National
LGBTQ Catholic groups slam Trump over pope criticism
‘Moral truth and compassion always overcome ignorant hate’
LGBTQ Catholic groups have sharply criticized President Donald Trump over his criticisms of Pope Leo XIV.
Leo on April 13 told reporters while traveling to Algeria that he had “no fear of the Trump administration” after the president described him as “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy” in response to his opposition to the Iran war. (Trump on the same day posted to Truth Social an image that appeared to show him as Jesus Christ. He removed it on April 13 amid backlash from religious leaders.)
Vice President JD Vance, who is Catholic, during a Fox News Channel interview on the same day said “in some cases, it would be best for the Vatican to stick to matters of morality, to stick to matters of what’s going on with the Catholic church, and let the president of the United States stick to dictating American public policy.” Vance on April 14 once again discussed Leo during an appearance at a Turning Point USA event in Athens, Ga., saying he should “be careful when he talks about matters of theology.”
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni; former U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican Miguel Díaz; and Oklahoma City Archbishop Paul Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, are among those who have criticized Trump over his comments. The president, for his part, has said he will not apologize to Leo.
“The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants,” said Leo on Thursday at a cathedral in Bamenda, Cameroon.
Francis DeBernardo is the executive director of New Ways Ministry, a Maryland-based LGBTQ Catholic organization. He told the Washington Blade on Thursday that Trump’s comments about Leo “are one more example of the ridiculous hubris of this leader (Trump) whose entire record shows that he is nothing more than a middle-school bully.”
“LGBTQ+ adults were often bullied as children, and they have learned the lesson that bullies act when they feel frightened or threatened,” said DeBernardo. “But secular power does not threaten the Vicar of Christ, and Pope Leo’s response illustrates this truth perfectly.”
DeBernardo added Trump “is obviously frightened that Pope Leo, an American, has more power and influence than the president on the world stage.”
“Like most Trumpian bullying, this strategy will backfire,” DeBernardo told the Blade. “Moral truth and compassion always overcome ignorant hate. Trump’s actions are not an example of his power, but of his impotence.”
Marianne Duddy-Burke, executive director of DignityUSA, an LGBTQ Catholic organization, echoed DeBernardo.
“He [Trump] has demonstrated throughout both presidencies that he doesn’t understand the basic concepts of any faith system that is founded on the dignity of human beings, the importance of common good,” Duddy-Burke told the Blade on Thursday during a telephone interview. “It’s just appalling.”
Duddy-Burke praised Leo and the American cardinals who have publicly criticized Trump.
“The pope’s popularity — given how much more respect Pope Leo has than the man sitting in the White House — is a blow to his ego,” Duddy-Burke told the Blade. “That seems to be a sore sport for him.”
“It’s such an imperialistic world view,” she added.
Leo ‘is the real peacemaker’
The College of Cardinals last May elected Leo to succeed Pope Francis after his death.
Leo, who was born in Chicago, is the first American pope. He was the bishop of the Diocese of Chiclayo in Peru from 2015-2023.
Francis made him a cardinal in 2023.
Juan Carlos Cruz — a gay Chilean man and clergy sex abuse survivor who Francis appointed to the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors — has traveled to Ukraine several times with Dominican Sister Lucía Caram since Russia launched its war against the country in 2022. Cruz on Thursday responded to Trump’s criticism of Leo in a text message he sent to the Blade from Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital.
“I am in Ukraine under many attacks,” said Cruz. “Trump is an asshole and has zero right to criticize the Pope who is the real peacemaker.”
The White House
Grindr to host first-ever White House Correspondents’ Dinner party
App’s head of global government affairs a long-time GOP-aligned lobbyist
Gay dating and hookup app Grindr will host its first-ever White House Correspondents’ Weekend party on April 24.
The event is scheduled for the night before the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, an annual gathering meant to celebrate the First Amendment, honor journalism, and raise money for scholarships.
The White House Correspondents’ Dinner is organized by the White House Correspondents’ Association, a group of journalists who regularly cover the president and the administration.
An invitation obtained by the Washington Blade’s Joe Reberkenny and Michael K. Lavers reads:
“We’d be thrilled to have you join us at Grindr’s inaugural White House Correspondents’ Dinner Weekend Party, a Friday evening gathering to bring together policymakers, journalists, and LGBTQ community leaders as we toast the First Amendment.”
The Blade requested an interview with Joe Hack, Grindr’s head of global government affairs, but was unable to reach him via phone or Zoom. He did, however, provide a statement shared with other outlets, offering limited explanation for why the company decided 2026 was the year for the app to host this event.
“Grindr represents a global community with real stakes in Washington. The issues being debated here — HIV funding, digital privacy, LGBTQ+ human rights — are daily life for our community. Nobody does connections like Grindr, and WHCD weekend is the most iconic place in the country to make them. We figured it was time to host.”
Hack said the company has been “well received” by lawmakers in both parties and has found “common ground” on issues such as HIV funding and keeping minors off the app. He credited longstanding relationships in Washington and what he described as Grindr’s “respectful” approach to lobbying.
Hack, a longtime Republican-aligned lobbyist, previously worked for several GOP lawmakers, including U.S. Sens. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), George Voinovich (R-Ohio), Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), and U.S. Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.).
According to congressional disclosure forms compiled by OpenSecrets, Grindr spent $1.3 million on lobbying in 2025— more than Tinder and Hinge’s parent company Match Group.
“This is going to be elevated Grindr,” Hack told TheWrap when describing the invite-only party that has already generated buzz on social media. “This isn’t going to be a bunch of shirtless men walking around. This is going to be very elevated, elegant, but still us.”
He also pointed to the company’s work on HIV-related initiatives, including efforts to maintain federal funding for healthcare partners that distribute HIV self-testing kits through the app.
The event comes at a particularly notable moment for an LGBTQ-focused connection platform to enter the Washington social circuit at a high-profile political weekend, as LGBTQ rights remain under constant attack from conservative lawmakers, particularly around transgender healthcare, sports participation, and public accommodations.
Tennessee
Charlie Kirk Act advances in Tenn.
Bill would limit protests, protects speakers opposing ‘transgender’ identities
The Tennessee legislature has passed Senate Bill 1741 / House Bill 1476, dubbed the “Charlie Kirk Act,” which, if signed by Republican Gov. Bill Lee, would reshape how public colleges and universities regulate speech on campus.
The measure targets all public higher education institutions and requires them to adopt a “free expression” policy modeled on the University of Chicago’s framework. That framework emphasizes that universities should not shield students from controversial or offensive ideas and requires state schools to formally embrace institutional neutrality — meaning they do not publicly take a stance on political or social issues.
Under the legislation, publicly funded schools cannot disinvite or cancel invited speakers based on their viewpoints or in response to protests from students or faculty. Student organizations, however — like Turning Point USA, an American nonprofit that advocates for conservative politics on high school, college, and university campuses, founded by Charlie Kirk, and often lack widely represented liberal counterparts — would retain broad authority to bring speakers to campus regardless of controversy.
The law includes broad protections for individuals and organizations expressing religious or ideological beliefs, including opposition to abortion, homosexuality, or transgender identity, regardless of whether those views are rooted in religious or secular beliefs. It further prohibits public institutions from retaliating against faculty for protected speech or scholarly work.
The bill, which has been hailed by supporters as an effort to “preserve campus free speech,” ironically also limits protest activity. Shouting down speakers, blocking sightlines, staging disruptive walkouts, or physically preventing entry to events are now considered “substantial interference” under the legislation, making those who engage in such actions subject to discipline.
Some of those disciplinary consequences include probation, suspension, and even expulsion for students, while faculty who protest in ways deemed to violate the policy could face unpaid suspensions and termination after repeated violations.
Supporters of the bill argue it strengthens free expression on campus. State Rep. Gino Bulso (R-Brentwood), the bill’s sponsor, said it reinforces a commitment to “civil and robust” debate at public universities.
“The Charlie Kirk Act creates critical safeguards for students and faculty and renews the idea that our higher education institutions should be centers of intellectual debate,” Bulso told Fox 17. “This legislation honors the legacy of Charlie Kirk by promoting thoughtful engagement and defending religious freedom.”
Critics, including Democratic lawmakers, have raised concerns that the legislation effectively elevates certain ideological viewpoints — particularly those tied to religious objections to LGBTQ identities — while exposing students and faculty to punishment for protest or dissent.
“It’s ironic that this body is talking about free speech when we had professors in Tennessee schools expelled and suspended when they did not mourn the death of Charlie Kirk — when they said that his statements were problematic and that the way he died did not redeem the way he lived,” state Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) told WKRN.
Kirk, the right-wing activist and founder of Turning Point USA, for whom the bill is named, was assassinated in September 2025 at a public event at Utah Valley University. His legacy and rhetoric remain deeply polarizing, particularly among LGBTQ advocates, who have cited his history of anti-LGBTQ statements in opposing his campus appearances.
The bill now heads to Lee’s desk for his signature.
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