Book Exposes Karl Rove's Gay Link

September 5, 2006

A new book on Karl Rove, the man credited with pulling together a
conservative Christian base to elect and then re-elect George Bush to
the presidency, details to what lengths he would go to win election.

In "The Architect: Karl Rove and the Master Plan for Absolute Power"
writers James Moore and Wayne Slater reveal that Rove has told
insiders he does not consider himself "a Christian", had a father who
was gay, and regularly dealt with openly gay Republicans as he worked
publicly to have a constitutional amendment passed that would ban
same-sex marriage.

Rove's father, Louis, left the family and moved to California where he
came out.  Louis Rove died in Palm Springs as "his son was in the
midst of launching the antigay issues campaign that was to lead to the
re-election of George W. Bush."

In interviews with friends of Louis Rove the authors detail how the two
men remained close right up until Louis' death.  Rove keeps a picture
of his father on his desk.

But the closeness of father and son, according to the book, is belied by
the extraordinary efforts Karl Rove made to use fear of gays a tool to
attract religious conservatives.

The book also details well known Republicans - including Republican
National Committee chairman Ken Mehlman - who have been rumored
to be gay.

Moore and Slater are careful not to draw conclusions - instead allowing
the facts and interviews to speak for them. Moore is a former TV news
correspondent and Slater is a political writer. 

It is their second book on the Bush administration and Rove's
involvement in it.  

The book has earned plaudits from reviewers. But the cynicism of
political gay bashing in light of having an openly gay father has not
escaped the notice of LGBT rights groups.

"If this account is true, it further demonstrates how LGBT individuals are
found throughout the American family.  We are parents, partners,
children and citizens who deserve equal protection under the law,"
National Stonewall Democrats spokesperson John Marble stated.
"Unfortunately, the Bush Administration has done little to
address the unique legal and social challenges LGBT families face
every day.  Imagine how the families of our nation would be
strengthened if individuals like Karl Rove and Vice President Cheney 
used their positions to proactively argue the case of individual liberty
each time LGBT Americans are scapegoated by this administration."

Sections in the book dealing with Rove's self avowed agnosticism are
bound to infuriate conservative Christians already angry with Bush over
the failure by Congress to pass the constitutional amendment.


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"Those who deny freedom to others, deserve it not for themselves."
 - Abraham Lincoln
 



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