Meghan McCain: We Need More Gay Republicans!

Here's a question: Can Meghan McCain, the blog-a-lot daughter of Senator John McCain, help bring the Republican Party into the twenty-first century? Well, with her column at The Daily Beast, and during her many television interviews, she sure is giving it a go. Today's screed, for instance, attempts to light a fire under the Republican posterior on the matter of including gay rights in the party platform:

If the Republican Party has any hope of gaining substantial support from a wider, younger base, we need to get past our anti-gay rhetoric. As you can image, the road for gay Republicans hasn't been an easy one. Most find the words "homosexual" and "conservative" inherent contradictions, much the same way so many people can't seem to reconcile fiscal conservatism and the bit-tent philosophy of freedom and justice for all.

Later in the piece, Ms. McCain goes on to point out that supporting gay marriage rights does not necessarily come at the expense of other conservative values, like an opposition to abortion:

Recently, a conservative congressman was quoted saying, "If we don't save marriage, we can't remain pro-life." That's absurd.

She also adds:

So if anyone is still confused, let me spell it out for you. I believe life begins at conception and I believe that people who fall in love should have the option to get married.

So, McCain's argument is two-fold. Supporting gay rights is both pragmatic (the overwhelming majority of younger people support gay marriage) and moral (gay rights are human rights). It's an interesting mix. Part Libertarian, part party activist. The pragmatic part runs aground, however, when we consider the nation's views on keeping abortion legal. After all, a slight majority of Americans say they'd do just that. So, out of political expediency shouldn't the Republican party change its views on that, too?

And on the morality question: Should the GOP members who believe homosexuality is morally wrong--just as McCain does about abortion--simply modify their beliefs out of a desire to win votes?

Still, with each new column, McCain seems to be sharpening her political skills. And even if she doesn't change many Republican views, she makes for good entertainment.


David on Twitter
David on True/Slant