AP: NH gay marriage push highlights GOP shifts
On November 24, 2011, the Associated Press reported:
Whether they like it or not, Republican presidential candidates are joining New Hampshire’s intensifying gay marriage debate.
ABC News: Santorum Launches Policy Tour, Pushes Social Issues
On November 4, 2011, ABC News reported:
URBANDALE, IOWA Rick Santorum launched a three-speech, three-state policy roll-out tour Friday beginning with “moral, cultural” issues. The economy and national security will follow, but this was chosen as the first topic because it is the most important to Santorum, according to campaign aides. [...] Democrats responded quickly. American Bridge, a Democratic SuperPac, issued a statement while Santorum was still speaking. “Rick Santorum, and the other candidates running for the nomination, are dusting off the old playbook of using socially divisive issues to reignite the culture wars of the past in a desperate attempt to appease their base. Proposing ideas like disbanding the 9th circuit court will create exactly zero jobs and shows that they are more interested in playing politics than getting our economy back on track,” communications director Ty Matsdorf said in the statement.
North Platte Bulletin: Stenberg wants to amend Constitution, seven times
On October 19, 2011, the North Platte Bulletin reported:
Don Stenberg stopped in North Platte Tuesday proposing seven new amendments to the U.S. Constitution, all of them conservative.
Plain Dealer: Conservative Family Research Council set to endorse Josh Mandel in U.S. Senate race
Henry Gomez from the Plain Dealer reports that Josh Mandel was endorsed by the controversial Family Research Council:
Family Research Council is no stranger to controversy. It cracks the Southern Poverty Law Center's list of hate groups for "defaming gays and lesbians." The New York Times, in its coverage of last week's summit, noted that FRC dismisses the claim as "politically motivated."
POLITICO: Neumann: Gay lifestyle "unacceptable"
Dave Catanese covers Mark Neumann's comments on homosexuality:
Freshly minted Wisconsin Senate candidate Mark Neumann is being confronted again with anti-gay comments he made 15 years ago and later amended.
PolitiFact Ohio: Former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland raps Josh Mandel as a flip flopper on abortion, gay rights
Politifact Ohio examines Gov. Strickland's comments on Ohio Senate candidate Josh Mandel's positions. Despite his support for domestic partner benefits…
Rick Perry: Tea Party Frenemy
Rick Perry was quick to recognize and capitalize on the tea party’s rise in 2009, casting himself as a strong advocate for “state-based” solutions and railing against perceived encroachments from Washington. But activists have been less than impressed with Perry’s deviation from the movement’s hardline stances on immigration, property rights, government mandates and spending itself. See the research after the jump.
Boston Globe: Brown’s decision to skip ‘It Gets Better’ video brings a wave of criticism
On July 31, 2011, the Boston Globe reported:
In an act organized by [Brown's] senior partner, Senator John F. Kerry, the 11 Democrats in the state’s congressional delegation made an “It Gets Better’’ video aimed at offering moral support to gay teenagers contemplating suicide or struggling with depression. The 12th member of the delegation - Brown - declined to participate, prompting immediate questions when the video was released Wednesday.
Huffington Post: Entire Massachusetts Congressional Delegation Appears In 'It Gets Better' Video — Except Scott Brown
On July 27, 2011, the Huffington Post reported:
The Massachusetts congressional delegation has put together a new video for the "It Gets Better" project, reassuring LGBT youth who may be getting bullied that their lives will improve when they get older. But one of the state's most high-profile politicians, Republican Sen. Scott Brown, is notably absent from the video. Of the 12 lawmakers who represent Massachusetts in the Senate and House of Representatives, Brown is the only one who does not appear.