Gay Marriage And The Republican Party

Is the Republican party establishment becoming gay friendly? Meghan McCain (the daughter of John McCain) and the man who managed McCain's presidential campaign spoke in support of gay marriage at the latest Log Cabin Republican convention.

While many considered John McCain to be a presidential candidate that was not open to gay issues, the reality is quite different. In particular, his daughter, Meghan McCain, has become something of an icon for Log Cabin Republicans.

Megan McCain has very passionately endorsed gay marriage, and she is using the visibility that she achieved during the campaign to continue to press this issue with Republican leaders.

Many are also surprised to hear that the man who managed McCain's presidential campaign, Steve Schmidt, is also openly endorsing gay marriage.

"For the party to be seen as anti-gay, that is injurious to its candidates in places like California and Washington," Schmidt said at the Log Cabin event.

Even California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who many considered to be very "conservative", is backing efforts to overturn Proposition 8. Proposition 8 banned gay marriage in California, but now many Republicans leaders such as Schwarzenegger are leading the effort to defeat it.

So is the Republican party going to embrace gay marriage any time soon?

Let's hope not, but things are certainly trending in that direction.