Tony Perkins is urging Senator John
Cornyn to withdraw from a scheduled appearance next week at an event
for gay GOP group Log Cabin Republicans.
It would be difficult to label the
Texas senator gay friendly – he opposes repeal of the military's
ban on open gay service (“Don't Ask, Don't Tell”) and government
recognition of gay unions – but Perkins, president of the social
conservative Family Research Council, is concerned that his presence
would undermine conservative values.
“[I]t is deeply troubling to me that
you would lend your credibility to this organization,” Perkins
said in a letter addressed to Cornyn.
Last week, the Log Cabin Republicans
convinced U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips to declare “Don't
Ask, Don't Tell” unconstitutional. The
Justice Department has yet to announce whether it will appeal the
law.
Perkins decried the ruling as a
“blatant example of judicial activism.”
“I … want to express my profound
disappointment in the fact that you are assisting the very
organization that sought this decision from Judge Phillips,” he
said.
“How can a group that professes
allegiance to the GOP at the same time be committed to using judicial
activism to advance its radical social policies even at the risk of
undermining the U.S. military and, as a result, national security?”
Cornyn defended his decision to attend
the September 22 fundraiser, saying it was important to engage with
“adults with whom we may disagree.”
“Respecting each other's dignity is
not about ignoring those disagreements, but rather being honest about
them, and working together where possible despite them,” he said in
a response to Perkins.
Other Republicans expected to attend
the fundraiser to be held at Washington's Capitol Hill Club are
representatives Pete Sessions of Texas, Joseph Cao of Louisiana,
Charles Djou of Hawaii, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida and Judy
Biggert of Illinois.