Here's a thread to discuss last night's Indiana Equality candidate forum for 7th District special election candidates. Vox Populi has offered up his thoughts in the diaries, with some analysis that may surprise folks who have been following the comment-section debates over the last few weeks.
Personally, I thought the event was extremely well run and definitely served its purpose of forcing the candidates to talk policy positions on GLBT issues and beyond.
The biggest thing that struck me? How much, despite every attempt to make it seem otherwise, Jon Elrod is still very much a Republican.
A lot of folks -- including Jon himself -- love to pretend that Elrod is some strange variety of super-lovable moderate. But while he certainly takes a more respectable stance on some social issues, the fact remains that on bread-and-butter issues, he's a GOP stalwart through and through.
Privatization of Social Security? Check! Wants to maintain Bush's tax cuts on the richest one percent? Check! Against a woman's right to choose? Check!
A vote for Elrod is a vote for a Republican Speaker of the House, and more importantly a vote for the exact kind of policy initiatives that have made George W. Bush the least popular leader in American history.
For their part, the Indianapolis Star gives us this report:
Carson stressed bold and courageous leadership and spoke of carrying on his grandmother's tradition. Elrod promised calm and determined leadership with a focus on fiscal reform and constituent services. Shepard said real change means not sending either mainstream party for the same results.
The candidates spoke on a wide range of topics. The format of the event aimed more for breadth than depth, often giving the candidates little time to answer complex questions such as how to save Social Security or bring troops home from Iraq.
All three received considerable applause from the audience, especially when they spoke in favor of gay rights and ending discrimination. They agreed the government should not waste time on wedge issues like gay marriage and should stay out of people's bedrooms.
"We are thin in the military and we're going to worry about if someone's gay?" Carson said. "This is ridiculous."
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