Thursday November 05, 2015
Rubio’s New Billionaire Backer Has Gay Marriage Agenda
The news last week that Paul Singer, billionaire Republican fundraiser and unabashed advocate of same-sex marriage, will support Marco Rubio for president has drawn mixed reviews from state and national pro-family activists.
As Rubio rises in state and national polls, new scrutiny is being made of his positions and supporters.
A billionaire hedge fund manager, Singer has been a major GOP donor – and has made quite clear that his priority issue has been support of gay rights in the Republican Party. Singer and his network of donors have steered millions to GOP candidates at the federal and state level who backed same-sex marriage.
In a 2013 interview with the Washington Post, Singer explained his position: “I believe marriage equality is critical to the future of individual liberty and the strength of the American family, and the Republican Party should stand for both.â€
Rubio has said publicly he opposes same-sex marriage and is strongly pro-life.
“Sen. Rubio encouraged many values voters when he spoke of the importance of defending life and said all the right things about marriage,†said Gary Bauer of the Working Families PAC, who is neutral in the presidential race. “And he said he welcomed a debate with Hilary Clinton on her extreme views.â€
But other social conservatives are concerned about Singer’s embrace of Rubio.
“It certainly raises a question that ought to be addressed by Sen. Rubio,†said Colin Hanna, head of Let Freedom Ring, a traditional values organization.
But, Hanna quickly added, “It should not be interpreted to mean that Sen. Rubio has suddenly capitulated on the issue of marriage being between a man and a woman, on which he has always been solid.”
Special:
Hanna emphasized that while he has not endorsed anyone for president, he is “very positive toward Rubio.â€
But veteran cultural conservative leader Paul Caprio of the Chicago-based Family-PAC voiced concern about Singer’s endorsement of Rubio.
“This could certainly hurt Rubio with a lot of social conservatives,†Caprio told Newsmax. “Singer wants to be influential in the platform [of the GOP national convention. We know the radical position he comes from and that he uses his resources to advance it.â€
In 2012, for example, Singer raised more than $250,000 to help four embattled Republican state senators in New York who cast decisive votes that resulted in legalizing gay marriage in the Empire State.
Sandy Rios, director of government affairs for the American Family Association, strongly seconded Caprio’s view.
“It would be a high bar indeed to expect presidential campaign donors to match a candidate’s position on every issue,†Rios told Newsmax. “But when a donor like Paul Singer isn’t just inclined to support gay marriage, but has orchestrated the implementation of it with his millions, it should be of grave concern to social conservatives when that support is thrown behind Sen. Marco Rubio.â€
A top Republican fundraiser in New York City who is familiar with Singer doubts he would have publicly backed Rubio without assurances from the senator that opposition to same sex marriage would be an agenda item if elected.
Still, supporters of Rubio on the cultural right are hopeful that their candidate’s strong pro-family position would not be affected by his newly minted support from Singer, who raised more than $11.5 million for Republican candidates in 2014 and $3 million for Mitt Romney in 2012.
Thanks for the ping.
I firmly believe that ALL of the big money donors decide before they donate which politician they can buy. Nobody donates millions of dollars to a politician out of the goodness of their heart.
http://theconservativetreehouse.com/2015/11/05/more-research-on-candidate-marco-rubio/
Conservative Treehouse research on Rubio.