Ronnie Coffman takes the low road
Posted by BrianAn ad running on WVNN for Ronnie Coffman, the Republican candidate for the Alabama House for the 5th district, is quite nasty. The ad, which is paid for by the Alabama Republican Party, tells the listener that Coffman’s opponent, Henry White, should not be supported because, well, because you should hate gay people. At least I think that is what the ad is saying.
Liberal Henry is running on the same ticket with Alabama’s first openly gay candidate and has pledged his support for her this November.
The gay candidate the ad refers to is Patricia Todd. This isn’t an isolated ad. Dan at Between the Links (as well as many others, which are linked at the end of Dan’s post) have pointed out that this effort is being organized by Twinkle Cavanaugh.
I wonder if similar ads were used back during the segregation era? I can imagine an ad saying, “Johnny Appleseed is running on the same ticket with Alabama’s first negro candidate and has pledged his support to him. Appleseed is beholden to the liberal, negro special interests.” That hypothetical ad sounds so disgusting that it is hard to imagine a time when it might have been a reality. Cavanaugh’s ad is not that different.
The topic of homosexuality is all over politics these days. Republicans have typically been viewed as being unaccepting of gays - if not outright hostile towards them. Cavanaugh’s campaign reinforces this stereotype. Conventional wisdom says that the Democratic party is the best refuge for gays. But, there are gay Republicans.
Why mention that? In the aftermath of the Mark Foley scandal it has been a little instructive to see the Democratic party deriding the GOP as the “Gay Old Party.” That mocking name implies that the Dems think there is something wrong with gays. Is the Democratic Party really a safe harbor for gays or does it just use them (not unlike it is alleged that the GOP has been using evangelicals)?
Related content:
October 21st, 2006 at 12:10 am
[...] Now Brian at Flashpoint is telling us that the Republican Party is running a message as a radio ad for the Republican candidate for House District 5 , Ronnie Coffman. Coffman faces Henry White (D) in the general election. Liberal Henry is running on the same ticket with Alabama’s first openly gay candidate and has pledged his support for her this November. [...]
October 21st, 2006 at 12:25 am
Brian -
I think to answer the question in the last sentence of your post you need go no further than Henry White himself. In the Democratic runoff against Anita Raby, White was headed for defeat until he and his good ole boy cronies used a whisper campaign to smear Anita as a lesbian. That more than anything was the main contributor in her going down to defeat.
Also, let’s not forget about Patricia Todd’s runoff opponent, Gaynell Hendricks. If I remember correctly Ms. Hendricks had no qualms about using Patricia Todd’s sexual preference as a club against her, either.
The point of all this is that neither party is immune from playing the “gay card” when it suits their purposes. To declare this is just a Republican problem is not being intellectually honest.
Anonymous
P.S. Since I’m aware that at least two other Republican candidates had the Alabama Republican Party running a similar message for them, I don’t know if it’s fair to single out Mr. Coffman. A better title for your post might have been, “Twinkle Andress Cavanaugh takes the low road”. She’s the one I blame for all of this anyway.
October 21st, 2006 at 12:29 am
What’s wrong with bashing gays?
October 21st, 2006 at 5:50 am
Anon,
While you’re last point about TAC taking the low road might have also been an appropriate title is valid, I still think that Coffman deserves enough blame to merit his name in the title. TAC isn’t running this ad without his knowledge and approval (implicit or explicit).
Josh,
You’re certainly free to bash gays and others as much as you see fit. Just understand that if you are a public figure you will be held accountable for your views. In Alabama, though, there may not be much negative backlash from gay bashing.