Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund President and CEO Chuck Wolfe issued the following statement tonight regarding an announcement by the former chair of the Republican National Committee,  Ken Mehlman, that he is gay:

“Coming out is a personal decision, and it can have a profound impact on families, friends, colleagues and constituents.  We hope the fact that Ken Mehlman has reached this level of honesty will now encourage other political leaders to reject divisive anti-gay campaign tactics which, as Mr. Mehlman now admits, are purely cynical attempts to manipulate the American public,” Wolfe said.  ”We look forward to the day when all political leaders, regardless of party, are able to be honest about themselves and their families, and still rise to positions where they can lead by example.”

Mehlman led the GOP during administration of President George W. Bush when, in the 2004 and 2006 national elections, party officials deliberately used anti-gay political messaging to drive social conservatives to the polls, according to Marc Ambinder, who broke the news tonight:

Mehlman said at the time that he could not, as an individual Republican, go against the party consensus. He was aware that Karl Rove, President Bush’s chief strategic adviser, had been working with Republicans to make sure that anti-gay initiatives and referenda would appear on November ballots in 2004 and 2006 to help Republicans.

Mehlman acknowledges that if he had publicly declared his sexuality sooner, he might have played a role in keeping the party from pushing an anti-gay agenda.

In 2004, Karl Rove masterminded a devious political strategy from his perch at the White House, building a massive get-out-the-vote scheme partly centered around opposition to marriage equality.  But even with a federal judge in California declaring Proposition 8 unconstitutional this week, it appears unlikely his decision will be used to energize the GOP base in the 2010 mid-term elections.

President George W. Bush won his 2004 reelection bid with 50.7 percent of the vote to Sen. John Kerry’s 48.3 percent, but Ohio, with its 20 electoral votes, was the real prize. That November, Ohio and 10 other states had gay marriage ban questions on their statewide ballots, each passing easily.  The New York Times reported that the bans in Ohio and elsewhere acted like “magnets,” driving social conservatives to the polls and boosting Bush’s numbers:

In Ohio, for instance, political analysts credit the ballot measure with increasing turnout in Republican bastions in the south and west, while also pushing swing voters in the Appalachian region of the southeast toward Mr. Bush. The president’s extra-strong showing in those areas compensated for an extraordinarily large Democratic turnout in Cleveland and in Columbus, propelling him to a 136,000-vote victory.

“I’d be naïve if I didn’t say it helped,” said Robert T. Bennett, chairman of the Ohio Republican Party. “And it helped most in what we refer to as the Bible Belt area of southeastern and southwestern Ohio, where we had the largest percentage increase in support for the president.”

What a difference six years makes.

This year Republicans are hoping to peel off some of the same moderate and independent voters who helped elect President Barack Obama in 2008.  But the reaction in GOP circles to Wednesday’s landmark ruling in California suggests Rove and his colleagues may view an anti-gay strategy as less appropriate today.

Part of the reason may be a remarkable shift in the electorate on the question of LGBT rights over  the last six years.  Today, nationwide support for marriage equality looks much different than it did in 2004.  A CBS News poll conducted in March of that year found just 22% of Americans favored legal marriage for gays and lesbians.  But an ABC News/Washington Post poll conducted in February of 2010 found nearly half (47%) supporting marriage rights for same-sex couples–a 25 percentage point jump.

Republicans also understand that in an economy that has yet to create many new jobs since the near-collapse of the financial system, voters may not be in a mood to listen to messages about same-sex marriage.  An article in Politico today explores the GOP’s apparent reluctance to pounce on Judge Vaughn Walker’s Proposition 8 decision:

“It raises an issue (Republicans would) rather not have to deal with … (it’s) hard to walk to the line of opposing same sex-marriage and displaying enough tolerance to keep independents and Democrats comfortable enough to vote for you.”

Larry Sabato, a political scientist at the University of Virginia, put it simply: “A modern party does not want a campaign that’s built around a crusade on gay rights. … it won’t work, for one thing, and for another, it’s so controversial that it would obscure the nonpartisan appeal of the economic issue.”

He added, “I don’t think that moderates and independents get very excited about this.”

The Sunshine Republicans, a South Florida group for gay Republicans, has announced its endorsement of independent candidate Gov. Charlie Crist over likely GOP nominee Marco Rubio, a former Speaker of the Florida State House, in the race to represent the state in the U.S. Senate.

Crist, who has moderated some of his positions on LGBT issues since quitting the GOP, now leads the race, according to recent polls.

Rubio has been endorsed by the Family Research Council, a powerful, national anti-gay group.

Calling anti-gay language in the state Republican Party Platform “extremist” and “foolish,” the Dallas chapter of Log Cabin Republicans has issued a statement asking the party’s candidates and elected officials to publicly repudiate those portions of the document, according to a report in the Advocate.

The state party recently unveiled its platform containing language calling for the criminalization of sodomy and referring to homosexuality in draconian terms.  ”"We believe that the practice of homosexuality tears at the fabric of society, contributes to the breakdown of the family unit, and leads to the spread of dangerous, communicable diseases,” the document states.

A statement by the Dallas group concluded:

The party platform is controlled by a handful of party activists. We call on Republicans at all levels to publicly repudiate many of the extremist positions taken in the Texas Party Platform. It is time for Republican office holders to stop pointing fingers while claiming to have ‘never read the state platform’ and clearly state their agreement or disagreement with such foolish language. 

We are happy this language is receiving wide exposure since we are certain it cannot survive the light of scrutiny. That said, we also believe the stakes are too high and Log Cabin Republicans is committed to working toward Republican victory despite the language in the platform.

The Rhode Island Republican Party is welcoming Log Cabin Republicans as a new party caucus, according to a report in The State Column:

It is unclear exactly what role the caucus will play in the state’s upcoming election if any. Yet, it seems the gay rights movement is gaining political support in a party not normally known for its support of alternative lifestyles.

The move comes at the same time as gay rights have become an increasingly pertinent issue in Rhode Island politics.

In March, more than 250 supporters of same-sex marriage crowded into the State House Rotunda for a rally aimed at demonstrating to legislators that the issue has popular support.

Four candidates for governor and the representative of a fifth have noted their support saying they would sign legislation to allowing same-sex couples to marry if they win the November election.

Independent candidate Lincoln Chafee said Rhode Island is “way overdue,” to embrace gay marriage. “We are the last New England state to pass this. We’re way overdue and I pledge to work with you to make it happen.”