Friday, September 23, 2011

Boo

I tuned into the Republican presidential candidates’ debate last night just in time to hear audience members boo Stephen Hill, a gay soldier serving in Iraq, who asked whether the candidates intend “to circumvent the progress that’s been made for gay and lesbian soldiers.” Then I heard Rick Santorum’s incoherent response, which ended in a promise to reinstate Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. The audience cheered. And that was enough viewing for one night. You can see for yourself at YouTube.

comments: 1

Pete said...

It doesn't surprise me that some audience members applaud such outrageous statements as Santorum's (and the earlier applause for letting the uninsured die, and for the number of executions in Texas under Perry's watch). There's always a fringe of people who believe such appalling things, and they're probably just a vocal minority of the debate audiences. They're free to speak their minds.

But what's totally unacceptable is that none of the GOP candidates dare to speak up and say that such a position is wrong. And it doesn't matter whether they agree with the applauders or not - even if the candidates don't agree, they're simply pandering to (and/or cowering in fear of) the Tea Party with their silence. At best the candidates' silence is cowardly; at worst it's abhorrent.