It’s stories like this that make me wonder if some Republicans want to lose. This is especially true of some of the folks involved in Republican politics in Texas. At the Texas Republican Party Convention in Houston, the GOP once again decided to exclude members of the Ft. Worth Log Cabin Republicans, a new chapter of the national LGBTQ conservative organization.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported:
The local group and the organization’s state affiliate were denied booths at the event that drew Republicans from across the state, a spokesperson for the party confirmed. “I know that we need change in Texas party leadership, and there’s a small group of very loud people that are running this, but we will come back in two years and continue to fight forward,” said Jason Baldwin, president of the Log Cabin Republicans of Fort Worth, after earlier saying he’s confident he’s in the right party.
The convention, which is held every two years, includes a number of booths promoting various Republican and conservative organizations and vendors. These groups apply for space prior to the event. The committee reviews and then votes on each application. Texas GOP Chair Matt Rinaldi cast the deciding vote to reject the Log Cabin Republicans’ application, according to Baldwin.
“I think they made the right decision based on our rule on booth approval,” Rinaldi said. “I think it’s inappropriate given the state of our nation right now for us to play sexual identity politics.”
The decision comes amid a national debate over far-leftist ideology on gender and sexuality being introduced in K-12 classrooms in public schools. The controversy became even more pronounced when multiple videos went viral on social media in which parents took their small children to drag queen shows.
However, Baldwin insisted that not all members of the LGBTQ community approve of these practices and has publicly stood against “child modification,” or providing kids with puberty blockers. “I think what bothers me is, is that our group is being lumped in as, just because we identify as LGBT we somehow support all of that,” he said. “That would be the same notion that all white people support the KKK. It’s just not an accurate statement.”
Baldwin also took issue with Rinaldi’s claim that the party is against “identity politics,” noting that there were several booths representing conservative women, specifically.
He’s right. The “identity politics” trope is a lame excuse concocted by folks like Rinaldi. As much as conservatives claim to detest identity politics, our actions show that it’s not true. Many of us support groups like Black Voices For Trump, Latino Voices For Trump, Blexit, Black Guns Matter, and other right-leaning organizations that represent people of different cultures, ethnicities, and sexual identities. We don’t reject identity politics. Rather, we reject the destructive ways the hard left has exploited identity politics to further divide the nation.
The Texas State GOP has consistently refused to allow the Log Cabin Republicans to have a seat at the table, likely fearing that it would alienate their most conservative of constituents. But it appears they have not yet gotten the memo: The conservative base isn’t quite as hung up on sexuality as it used to be. Indeed, this type of behavior is a nod back to the pre-Trump establishment line of thinking.
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In fact, when the Texas Republican Party adopted a new platform that identifies homosexuality as an “an abnormal lifestyle choice,” Donald Trump Jr. savaged them during an interview with Breitbart News. “The Texas GOP should focus its energy on fighting back against the radical democrats and weak RINOs currently trying to legislate our 2nd Amendment rights away, instead of canceling a group of gay conservatives who are standing in the breach with us,” he argued.
He’s not the only one.
Republican strategist Arthur Schwartz chimed in on Twitter, asserting that the GOP should set its sights on Sen. John Cornyn, who is set to lead Republican lawmakers in caving into anti-gunner Democrats on gun control laws. “Banner week for Texas electeds. One is banning Log Cabin from our convention and another is negotiating a gun grabbing bill with the democrats. Disgraceful,” he tweeted.
Banner week for Texas electeds. One is banning Log Cabin from our convention and another is negotiating a gun grabbing bill with the democrats. Disgraceful.
— Arthur Schwartz (@ArthurSchwartz) June 17, 2022
The Texas GOP’s decision also elicited a slew of attacks from progressives, who used it as proof that the party is so bigoted, it won’t even interact with members of the LGBTQ community who agree with its principles. The Log Cabin Republicans issued a statement slamming the party for its exclusionary approach.
“President Trump, who historically expanded the GOP’s coalition, made clear that LGBT conservatives are welcome in the America First movement and the Republican Party. It’s shameful that the Texas GOP leadership is choosing not to follow his lead.”
The Republican Party is in a favorable position at the moment. It is set to retake Congress in 2022 and the White House in 2024. However, it appears that when it comes to building a big tent, the Texas Republican Party resembles the establishment wing of the party more than the America First Trumpian faction.
It would be the very height of folly for the national movement to make Texas’ mistake. We will not win by excluding Americans willing to fight side-by-side with us for limited government, liberty, and the Constitution simply because of what they do in the bedroom. At this moment, we cannot afford to turn away any allies as we fight back against the Marxists looking to turn America into their next iteration of utopia. The conservative movement is a political movement, not a church. This battle is too important to be turning away people seeking to advance our agenda. Hopefully, the conservative movement writ large will not fall into the same foolishness as the Texas GOP. Otherwise, we could lose even more potential allies.
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