Groups opposed to gay rights are
applauding Mitt Romney's selection of Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan as his
running mate.
Ryan scored zero on the Human Rights
Campaign's (HRC) latest Congressional Scorecard, a measure of an
elected official's support for gay rights. The 42-year-old
congressman twice voted in support of the failed Federal Marriage
Amendment, which would amend the U.S. Constitution to define marriage
as a heterosexual union. He also voted against repeal of “Don't
Ask, Don't Tell.” In 2007, he voted in favor of a version of the
Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) which would outlaw workplace
discrimination based on sexual orientation. The current version of
the bill, which the House has not voted on, adds gender identity.
“Paul Ryan is a great choice. He has
one little blip in that he voted for ENDA (Employment
Non-Discrimination Act) a long time ago but voted right on the
marriage amendment and supports the unborn. Plus, I get to pull back
out my t-shirt from 2008 that says ‘Our VP is hotter than your VP!’
Bonus,” Concerned Women for America's Penny Nance wrote.
Ralph Reed, founder of the Faith and
Freedom Coalition, described the selection of Ryan as “inspired”
and “outstanding.”
“He is a person of devout Christian
faith who has a 100 percent pro-life and pro-family voting record in
his 14 years in Congress,” Reed
said.
Tony Perkins, president of the Family
Research Council, said Ryan's voting record “suggests that he
believes that social, fiscal and national security conservatism is
indivisible.”
(Related: Gay
GOP groups cheer Mitt Romney's choice of Paul Ryan.)