National
Santorum to gay soldier: ‘Don’t Ask’ repeal is ‘tragic’
Gay soldier asks question on LGBT rights at GOP debate
Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum (Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum reiterated his support for reinstating “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” on Thursday in response to a question asked by a gay soldier serving in Iraq during a presidential debate.
Santorum — one of nine GOP presidential hopefuls who attended the Fox News/Google debate in Orlando, Fla. — said he’d reinstitute the military’s gay ban but suggested he would allow troops who have already come out to continue serving.
The question came via video from an Army soldier serving in Iraq identified as Stephen Hill. The service member said he was gay during the video and asked if debate participants would rollback LGBT advances in the military that have been achieved under President Obama.
“In 2010, when I was deployed to Iraq, I had to lie about who I was because I’m a gay soldier and I didn’t want to lose my job,” the soldier said. “My question is: under one of your presidencies, do you intend to circumvent the progress we’ve made for gay and lesbian soldiers in the military?”
In response to the question, which was audibly booed by audience members during the debate, Santorum said, “Any type of sexual activity has absolutely no place in the military.”
Santorum maintained repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” — the 18-year-old ban on open service that officially came to an end Tuesday — amounts to affording special protections to gay troops.
“The fact that they’re making a point to include it as a provision within the military — that we are going to recognize a group of people and give them a special privilege in removing ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’ I think tries to inject social policy into the military,” Santorum said. “And the military’s job is to do one thing, and that is to defend our country.”
Santorum continued, “We need to give the military, which is all volunteer, the ability to do so in a way that is most efficient in protecting our men and women in uniform, and I believe this undermines that ability.”
The audience shouted in approval and applauded as the former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania made his remarks.
Pressed by Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly on what he would do with troops like Hill who are in service but already out, Santorum replied, “What we’re doing is social experimentation. That’s tragic.”
Santorum then restated his pledge to reinstitute “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” as he maintained service members who are already out should be excluded from expulsion.
“I would just say that going forward, we would reinstitute that policy if Rick Santorum was president: period,” Santorum said. “That policy would be reinstituted, and as far as people who are in it, I would not throw them out because that would be unfair to them because of the policy of this administration.”
But then, in a seeming contradiction, Santorum said he’d “move forward with conforming with what was happening in the past,” under which he said “sex is not an issue. ”
“It should not be an issue. Leave it alone,” Santorum said. “Keep it to yourself — whether you’re heterosexual or homosexual.”
Gay GOP groups railed against Santorum in response to the answer he gave to the gay service member during the debate.
In a joint statement, Jimmy LaSalvia, executive director of GOProud, and Chris Barron, chair of the organization, said Santorum “disrespected” troops and owes the soldier who asked the question “an immediate apology.”
“That brave gay soldier is doing something Rick Santorum has never done — put his life on the line to defend our freedoms and our way of life,” LaSalvia and Barron said. “It is telling that Rick Santorum is so blinded by his anti-gay bigotry that he couldn’t even bring himself to thank that gay soldier for his service.”
LaSalvia and Barron noted that Hill is serving in the Iraq war, an operation that Santorum said he supports.
“How can Senator Santorum claim to support this war if he doesn’t support the brave men and women who are fighting it?” LaSalvia and Barron said.
R. Clarke Cooper, executive director of the National Log Cabin Republicans, said Santorum gave a “shameful response” to the service member and “was incoherent and out of touch.”
“America’s uniformed leaders support gays and lesbians serving alongside their colleagues with dignity and respect,” said Cooper, who’s also an Iraq combat veteran and current Army Reserve officer.
“Santorum’s divisive and homophobic remarks do not befit a commander-in-chief,” Cooper continued. “Americans want to hear about how our next president is going to cut our national debt, advocate for a confident foreign policy and most importantly help let the private sector thrive to create jobs.”
It’s not the first time Santorum has said he’d reinstate “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” He affirmed he would institute the military’s gay ban when Think Progress asked him about the issue in April.
Republican presidential candidate and U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) has also said she’d reinstitute “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” if elected to the White House.
Watch the video here (via Think Progress):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKtzOjAWGIE&feature=player_embedded
UPDATE: In a subsequent appearance Friday on Fox News, Santorum said he condemns those in the audience who booed Hill, although the candidate added he heard no jeers during the debate.
“I condemn the people who booed that gay soldier,” Santorum said. “That soldier is serving our country. I thank him for his service to our country. I’m sure he’s doing an excellent job. I hope he is safe. I hope he returns safely and does his mission well.”
Santorum continued, “I have to admit I seriously did not hear those boos. Had I heard them, I certainly would have commented on them, but, as you know, when you’re inside that sort of environment, you’re sort of focused on the question and formulating your answer, and I just didn’t hear those couples of boos that were out there. But certainly had I, I would have said, ‘Don’t do that. This man is a serving our country and we are to thank him for his service.'”
Watch the video here (via Think Progress):
State Department
Democracy Forward files FOIA request for State Department bathroom policy records
April 20 memo outlined anti-transgender rule
Democracy Forward on Tuesday filed a Freedom of Information Act request for records on the State Department’s new bathroom policy.
A memo titled “Updates Regarding Biological Sex and Intimate Spaces, Including Restrooms” that the State Department issued on April 20 notes employees can no longer use bathrooms that correspond with their gender identity.
“The administration affirms that there are two sexes — male and female — and that federal facilities should operate on this objective and longstanding basis to ensure consistency, privacy, and safety in shared spaces,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Piggot told the Daily Signal, a conservative news website that first reported on the memo. “In line with President Trump’s executive order this provides clear, uniform guidance to the department by grounding policy in biological sex as determined at birth.”
President Donald Trump shortly after he took office in January 2025 issued an executive order that directed the federal government to only recognize two genders: male and female. The sweeping directive also ordered federal government agencies to “effectuate this policy by taking appropriate action to ensure that intimate spaces designated for women, girls, or females (or for men, boys, or males) are designated by sex and not identity.”
Democracy Forward’s FOIA request that the Washington Blade exclusively obtained on Tuesday is specifically seeking a copy of the memo that details the State Department’s new bathroom policy. Democracy Forward has also requested “all” memo-specific communications between the State Department’s Bureau of Global Public Affairs and the Daily Signal from April 1-21.
Federal Government
House Republicans push nationwide ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill
Measures would restrict federal funding for LGBTQ-affirming schools
Republicans have been gaining ground in reshaping education policy to be less inclusive toward LGBTQ students at the state level, and now they are turning their focus to Capitol Hill.
Some GOP lawmakers are pushing for a nationwide “Don’t Say Gay” bill, doubling down on their commitment to being the party of “traditional family values” by excluding anyone who does not identify with their sex at birth.
The largest anti-LGBTQ education legislation to reach the House chamber is House Bill 2616 — the Parental Rights Over the Education and Care of Their Kids Act, or the PROTECT Kids Act. The PROTECT Kids Act, proposed by U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), and co-sponsored by U.S. Reps. Burgess Owens (R-Utah), Mary Miller (R-Ill.), Robert Onder (R-Mo.), and Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.), would require any public elementary and middle schools that receive federal funding to require parental consent to change a child’s gender expression in school.
The bill, which was discussed during Tuesday’s House Rules Committee hearing, would specifically require any schools that get federal money from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 — which was created to minimize financial discrepancies in education for low-income students — to get parental approval before identifying any child’s gender identity as anything other than what was provided to the school initially. This includes getting approval before allowing children to use their preferred locker room or bathroom.
It reads that any school receiving this funding “shall obtain parental consent before changing a covered student’s (1) gender markers, pronouns, or preferred name on any school form; or (2) sex-based accommodations, including locker rooms or bathrooms.”
LGBTQ rights advocates have criticized both national and state efforts to require parental permission to use a child’s preferred gender identity, as it raises issues of at-home safety — especially if the home is not LGBTQ-affirming — and could lead to the outing of transgender or gender-curious students.
A follow-up bill, HB 2617, proposed by Owens, one of the bill’s co-sponsors, prevents the use of federal funding to “advance concepts related to gender ideology,” using the definition from President Donald Trump’s 2025 Executive Order 14168, making that an enshrined definition in law of sex rather than just by executive order. There is also a bill making its way through the senate with the same text— Senate Bill 2251.
Advocates have also criticized this follow-up legislation, as it would restrict school staff — including teachers and counselors — from acknowledging trans students’ identities or providing any support. They have said that this kind of isolation can worsen mental health outcomes for LGBTQ youth and allows for education to be politicized rather than being based in reality.
David Stacy, the Human Rights Campaign’s vice president of government affairs, called this legislation out for using LGBTQ children as political pawns in an ideology fight — one that could greatly harm the safety of these children if passed.
“Trans kids are not a political agenda — they are students who deserve safety and affirmation at school like anyone else,” Stacy said in a statement. “Despite the many pressing issues facing our nation, House Republicans continue their bizarre obsession with trans people. H.R. 2616 does not protect children. It targets them. This bill is cruel, and we’re prepared to fight it.”
This is similar to Florida House Bills 1557 and 1069, referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill and “Don’t Say They” bill, respectively, restricting classroom discussions on sexual orientation and gender identity, prohibiting the use of pronouns consistent with one’s gender identity, expanding book banning procedures, and censoring health curriculum.
The American Civil Liberties Union is tracking 233 bills related to restricting student and educator rights in the U.S.
National
BREAKING NEWS: Shots fired at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner
Shooter reportedly opened fire inside hotel
Four loud bangs were heard in the International Ballroom of the Washington Hilton during the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday.
According to the Associated Press, a shooter opened fire inside the hotel outside the ballroom.
Attendees could hear four loud bangs as people started to duck and take cover. During the chaos sounds of salad and glasses were dropped as hotel employees, and guests ducked for cover.
The head table — which included President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, first lady Melania Trump, and White House Correspondents Association President Weijia Jiang — were rushed off stage.
“The U.S. Secret Service, in coordination with the Metropolitan Police Department, is investigating a shooting incident near the main magnetometer screening area at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner,” the U.S. Secret Service said in a statement. “The president and the First Lady are safe along all protects. One individual is in custody. The condition of those involved is not yet known, and law enforcement is actively assessing the situation.”
Trump held a press conference at the White House after he left the hotel.
“A man charged a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons and he was taken down by some very brave members of Secret Service,” said Trump.
Trump said the shooter is from California. He also said an officer was shot, but said his bullet proof vest “saved” him.
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, interim D.C. police chief Jeffrey Carroll, U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro, and other officials held their own press conference at the hotel.
Carroll said the gunman who has been identified as Cole Tomas Allen was armed with a shotgun, handgun, and “multiple” knives when he charged a Secret Service checkpoint in a hotel lobby. Carroll also told reporters that law enforcement “exchanged gunfire with that individual.”
Both he and Bowser said the gunman appeared to act alone.
“We are so very thankful to members of law enforcement who did their jobs tonight and made sure all guests were safe,” said Bowser. “Nobody else was involved.”
The Washington Blade will update this story as details become more available.
Baltimore Heritage wants Md. LGBTQ historical sites added to National Registry
Democracy Forward files FOIA request for State Department bathroom policy records
House Republicans push nationwide ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill
Botswana repeals colonial-era sodomy law
LGBTQ people are leaving Orthodox Judaism behind
Adoption under suspicion
Why we need to recognize and celebrate Lesbian Day of Visibility
Calendar: April 24-30
DC Center marks one year at new location
