REPUBLICAN CLOSET CASE JIM McCRERY UNEXPECTEDLY ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT... HMMMM...

When homophobic Louisiana Republican Jim McCrery was first exposed as a closet queen some years ago, his first instinct-- like that of Wide Stance Larry Craig-- was to find some woman to marry him. Instead of making a business arrangement for a ready-made family the way his then House colleague from Idaho did, McCrery married his secretary. Yeah, yeah, I know it sounds like a cliche but . . . it worked. First elected in 1988, McCrery has been elected again and again, as an extreme right-winger, in a backward north Louisiana district (LA-04). And he's risen in the Republican caucus to a position of some power and influence.

He just announced, quite suddenly, that he's giving it all up. A lot of water under the bridge since he was first outed and responded-- before marrying the secretary-- by getting drunk at a stripper (females) bar on the Carolina coast and dancing with a woman's panties on his head while a staffer anonymously alerted the media. I suppose in Shreveport that proved . . . something.

Speculation is that someone has something on Rep. McCrery and that another shoe will soon be dropping. His district is pretty red, but Democrats have been winning in much worse CDs. Louisiana, on the other hand, has a political system only tangentially related to the rest of America's.

BARNEY FRANK SAYS THERE ARE TEN CLOSET CASES IN CONGRESS. ANYONE KNOW WHO THEY ARE?

This evening I went to the L.A. County Library's author's series, ALOUD, to hear Daniel Hurewitz, who wrote Bohemian Los Angeles and the Making of Modern Politics and Stuart Timmons, who wrote Gay L.A.-- A History of Sexual Outlaws, Power Politics and Lipstick Lesbians. There was a great deal to savor and enjoy but what inspired me to run home and get to google was a mention of Frank Shaw, who was elected mayor of L.A. in 1933. "Unfortunately, he would eventually go into the history books as having led the most corrupt city administration in Los Angeles history" and he was the first U.S. mayor successfully recalled from office. What brings him up these 70 years since that recall was his behavior while trying to deflect the public approbation resulting in his unconscionable corruption. He turned the L.A.P.D. loose on the 'til then unmolested gay community, the first time-- though not the last-- they would be scapegoated by an ambitious and crooked politician.

Before heading over to the Library I saw a New York Times story about a less socially divisive reaction to gay people, not in California, where we are currently burdened by a corrupt and Neanderthal Republican governor, but from Massachusetts, where the state legislature struck down attempts by right-wing loons driven insane by hollow interpretations of Bronze Age superstitions, to outlaw same-sex marriage.

“In Massachusetts today, the freedom to marry is secure,” Gov. Deval Patrick said after the legislature voted 151 to 45 against the amendment, which needed 50 favorable votes to come before voters in a referendum in November 2008.

Massachusetts is the only state in America with full marriage equality. I guess it isn't a coincidence that Massachusetts also boasts one of only two openly gay members of Congress, Barney Frank (whose district, by the way, has a smaller percentage of gay people than the state in general).

In their May issue OUT Magazine featured "The Power 50" (they're obsessed with inane lists) and as part of that they interviewed Barney: "Out On The Hill-- Coming Out Didn't Stop Barney Frank From Becoming One of America's Most Powerful Politicians." One question stood out; actually, no questions stood out. One answer did though.

OUT: Are there closets full of closet cases on Capitol Hill?
Barney: "Sure. There are probably five or seven in the House and at least three senators.

Next question? Nope; they just let it drop. So, I had to turn to "Washington's Most Dangerous Man," my pal Mike Rogers to try to get to the bottom of this. Mike's web site, blogActive, makes a habit of exposing the worst of the hypocrites, the ones with the consistently homophobic voting records who also participate in closeted gay sex, the only kind Republicans approve of.

Mike is ultra cautious. He wants multiple sworn statements from participants and clear pictures before he'll out anyone, no matter how viciously anti-gay they are. Mike totally blew the cover of Virginia wingnut Ed Schrock, now retired, and for years has been helpful in getting out the information on Mark Foley (F-FL), also retired, and three who are still hiding in their closets, David Dreier (R-CA), James McCrery R-LA), and Larry Craig (R-ID).

Craig is a senator and surely one of the 3 Barney was referring to since he outed him on the Bill Maher show last year. And the others? Well, most people in DC who know about these things feel that Miss McConnell (R-KY) doesn't just act that way; he's as gay as any panicky right-wing closet case you never want to meet. Ditto for Lindsey Graham (R-SC). That's the easy part. Everyone knows about McConnell, Graham and Craig. What about all those House members?


Well, that's tougher. Dreier hardly even counts as being in the closet any longer since it's so widely known that he's gay, even in his own district... although no one ever speaks about it out loud. And McCrery thinks he inoculated himself by marrying his secretary and stashing her away somewhere deep in Louisiana. We've had some speculation about ex-high school wrestling coach Denny Hastert but the male prostitute who says he had sex with him was too embarrassed to be publicly identified. And people are pretty suspicious, for good reason, about Patrick McNutcase (R-NC). And the other 3? Mike's gone mum on me; but I know he's got some hot investigations he's tying up. Of course, Larry Flynt is trying to get to the bottom of all this too.


OOPS... ALMOST FORGOT PHIL ENGLISH

There have been rumors about him being something weird for years-- like a pursuer of young men. Someone reminded me this morning when I did a story about him being a defamer and slanderer.

THE FIGHT IS JOINED FOR GAY REPUBLICANS-- RUDY VS MITT

Rudy Giuliani, who, for a Republican, has always been tolerant of gay people and who himself is a notorious cross-dresser, has no intention of letting Mitt Romney run away with all the Republican congressional closet cases. Last month DWT reported that Louisiana closet queen Jim McCrery will be wielding the whip for Romney's congressional outreach. Republican closet cases seem all aflutter with Romney's manly good looks and don't care one way or the other about his pro-gay/anti-gay flip flops. Even Denny Hastert jumped the gun for his man Mitt and endorsed him very early.


Until today Giuliani has been unable to land any big GOP congressional gays (although he did manage to sign on Ken Mehlman). But if there's a bigger queen than McCrery in the House, it is surely California's campy David Dreier-- and Dreier is about to endorse Rudy. Dreier, who is also close to Governor Schwarzenegger, and is the chairman of the California GOP congressional delegation, is a major fundraiser in certain business circles. He is expected to help Giuliani suck up a lot of Republican money in California, although McCain also has a great deal of support from the self-loathing closet cases in the California Republican Party. Neither Matt Drudge nor Mark Foley has endorsed anyone yet.


UPDATE: NO WONDER THE GOP FRONT-RUNNERS ARE SO OBSESSED WITH GAY POLITICOS

The Atlantic Monthly has a fascinating story on gay activist Tim Gill, whose foundations donated $15 million to organizations and candidates that promote gay equality last year alone. Anyone wanna bet none of that's going to any of the Republican presidential hopefuls? But I'm sure Dreier and McCrery are worth something to them.

WHO WILL THE GOP'S GIGANTIC BLOC OF CLOSET QUEENS ENDORSE FOR PRESIDENT?

It's the season where endorsements come trickling in everyday, a way for the infant campaigns of the presidential hopefuls to show the media that someone cares. Republicans are most concerned about trumpeting endorsements from the kind of social conservatives who make up much of their base, which is why the McCain propaganda team was beating the drums today because a far right, somewhat insane housewife in Iowa named Maxine endorsed him, theoretically countering James Dobson's anyone-but-McCain plea a few days ago. On the other hand, there are quite a few Republican voters who might not be quite as insane or socially conservative and they're making endorsements too.

Republican ex-congressman Mark Foley (FL) is far too toxic after his resignation and arrest for molesting underage boy pages for any of the candidates to even accept his endorsement, let alone seek it. Ditto for resigned congressional Internet predator Ed Schrock (R-VA). But what about the closeted gay Republicans who haven't been caught with underage boys (yet)?

Many powerful closeted Republicans in Congress are close with McCain. Lindsey Graham, of course, has already endorsed him. (Graham expects to be McCain's first gay cabinet member and shills for him daily.) David Dreier hasn't made it official but he's another likely closet case for McCain, as is ex-congressman Jim Kolbe (R-AZ). Ed Koch is a professional Democrat-for-the-Republican and presumably his meager services will be purchased either by Giuliani or McCain... or Mitt Romney.

Today Romney's campaign not only announced that Jim McCrery (R-LA) is endorsing him but that he will be the House endorsement whip, lining up other Republicans (not just closeted ones, either) to back Mitt. A classic flip-flopper, Romney may be a bad candidate for gay people but a perfect one for conflicted closet cases. His infamous letter to the Log Cabin Republicans is forever being bandied about by right-wingers who claim he isn't right wing enough. On the other hand the Log Cabin guys and gals have always been big McCain fans and have and they have long held up Rudy Giuliani as their kind of Republican.


Meanwhile, the far right is aghast that Giuliani is a cross-dresser and that he supports some gay rights and it isn't likely that they'll be mollified that closet case Ken Mehlman has not just endorsed him but may serve as his campaign manager. No one yet knows who Mitch McConnell will be endorsing; he's too busy trying to kill ethics legislation in the Senate to think about much else.


UPDATE: PLANET DENNY COMIN' OUT FOR ROMNEY

Looks like Mitt's got something GOP closet queens like. Ex-Speaker Denny Hastert is reported to be about to endorse him.