Fallon Attacks Barney Frank As Insufficiently Pro Gay Rights
April 18th, 2008 at 04:54pm Geraldine
As much there was the hope that something would emerge to comment upon, other than Ed Fallon’s continued trawl through the gutters of dishonesty, sleaze and self-aggrandizement, it is disappointing that it is just Fallon’s political tone-deafness. Barney Frank, as the first openly gay man in Congress, has led the effort to pass a bill that would make it illegal to discriminate against someone based on sexual orientation. However, to get the bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives, Frank had to allow a compromise that removed the ban on discrimination based on gender identity from the bill. As a result, Ed Fallon is outraged about the first gay rights bill in history to be passed by House of Representatives and believes that the first openly gay man in the U.S. Congress is betrayed the cause of gay rights.
In addition, Fallon attacks Leonard Boswell for voting for the bill. Apparently, Boswell’s support for this compromise “calls into question how forcefully he’ll seek full equality for the GLBT community in the future.” In other words, Ed Fallon is attacking Leonard Boswell for being insufficiently pro-transsexual. Apparently, Boswell joining with Barney Frank and Tammy Baldwin to fight discrimination against gays and lesbians wasn’t enough for Ed Fallon. Fallon would rather have no protections instead of a compromise.
Aside from pointing out the Republican negative ads against Fallon write themselves, this shows the fundamental political flaw with Fallon. (Besides, of course, the sleaze and dishonesty). Fallon seems to think that unless something is perfect, it’s wrong. He ignores compromise and bathes the sense of self-righteousness that enables him to believe that his IM For Iowa slush fund is perfectly legitimate and that a clean elections advocate can make up statements from the FEC. If Iowans want a Congressman who values ideological purity over getting things done, they already have Steve King and at least we know where King’s money is coming from.
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Entry Filed under: Campaign 2008, US House, Leonard Boswell
Related Searches: ed fallon, leonard boswell, tammy baldwin, self aggrandizement, discrimination against gays and lesbians
2 Comments Add your own
1. desmoinesdem | April 20th, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Link? I clicked on all the links in your diary but couldn’t find any statement by Fallon criticizing Boswell for supporting that particular bill.
I went to and found a long list of bills on LGBT rights that Boswell has not supported or co-sponsored:
Your post is more than a little misleading, as it implies this is the only LGBT issue where there is a distinction between Fallon and Boswell. If you click on the link I have included, you will see that there are quite a few relevant bills Boswell has not supported in the past, including employment non-discrimination bills.
2. desmoinesdem | April 20th, 2008 at 7:01 pm
I messed up the formatting, but if you click the link in my comment above, it takes you to a page on Fallon’s website that goes over many distinctions between himself and Boswell on LGBT issues. The one Geraldine mentions is not at all the only distinction between the two candidates.
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