[Liz]

..... he has said that he believes marriage is ONLY for a man and a woman.....

What Rudy says, and what he does, are two entirely different things.

[jdm]

Imagine if Reagan had held a gay and lesbian breakfast in the late 70s. He never would have become President.

The defense strategy, apologist technique for this sort of thing is reminiscent of a Romney backing:

"Oh, that was back in the 90s, a long, long, long time ago, before people shopped online and before 24 came on the air. Those guys have changed now. They aren't like that anymore."

I just don't know how someone's core values can change so drastically past the age of mid 30s. Perhaps I'm getting old but the mid to late 90s seems like yesterday.

[Tokra]

Sorry - but in my book going to a breakfast with dykes does not equate to supporting gay marriage - especially when the man has said he believes marriage is between a man and a woman.

I am much more concerned with our nations security than I am with Rudy having breakfast with lesbos. New York has a very large gay population. These people vote. Do you think its smart for a mayor to totally ignore shuch a big voting block? I don't.

[Pro-Bush]

Thanks Liz, we all know that Rudy pushed legislation in NYC to mandate equal benefits for domestic gay partners.

He also lived with a gay couple after his divorce.

You can't get much more left than Rudy was on gay issues, he may sing a different tune now, but who's buying?

[GunRunner]

Stop confusing us with facts!

Stay at the back of the room with your arms folded. Rudy is a conservative and will win the nomination. If you disagree, you obviously want Hillary to be president.

[firebrand]

Anyone in NYC knows that you can't win here without the gay vote. Gay people are active in politics and wield a voting power 100 times greater than their numbers for this reason. They are organized, they have money, they are motivated. They already have an incredible number of elected officials, both out and closeted. You can't win without them.

I live in a middle-class family neighborhood, and in 2002 we had 6 or 7 candidates running for Assembly in my district, 6 of whom were gay, including the Republican. (Rosie O'Donnell's brother won.)

Rudy's willingness to make political compromises brought him to the highest office in the city. We needed him; we got him.

In national terms, I don't know what this means, since the issues are different. But I feel that the same general logic will apply if we elect Rudy: We will pay a great price but get a great prize.

For now, I support Duncan Hunter and hope that he will achieve critical mass.