Ohio Representative Jim Jordan has
decided to ditch a conservative convention because of the inclusion
of a group of gay Republicans.
Jordan is the first high-ranking
elected official to join at
least three socially conservative groups in boycotting next month's
annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) convention
because of gay GOP group GOProud's inclusion.
“Congressman Jordan believes that, in
addition to low taxes and less spending, conservatives must advocate
for traditional family values like life and marriage,” Jordan
spokeswoman Meghan Snyder told Cleveland daily The Plain Dealer.
“Family is the cornerstone upon which a community, state or nation
is built, and conservatives must lead the way in promoting the
strengths of the traditional family whenever we can.”
Jordan, a Republican who chairs the
U.S. House of Representatives' conservative Republican Study
Committee, was among the 39 Republican lawmakers who filed an amicus
brief in support of gay marriage opponents challenging the District
of Columbia's gay marriage law. In 2009, he introduced legislation
in Congress that would have blocked the start of the law.