Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison joined with her liberal and feminist colleagues to oppose his confirmation because of his pro-life views and because he and his wife co-authored an article for a Catholic newspaper on the roles of husbands and wives based on the epistles of St. Paul which have been read as a part of Catholic marriage ceremonies throughout Church history. (Eph. v. 22-25, 28-31,33). She and four other Republican Senators, Lincoln Chafee (RI), Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins (ME), and John Warner (VA) voted against the President’s nominee for the Arkansas federal bench. Mrs. Hutchison, who supports legal abortion until viability, not only voted against Leon Holmes’ confirmation, but she went to the Senate floor and spoke against him as well, saying that his statements over the last 25 years "lead me to conclude that he doesn't have the fundamental commitment to the total equality of women in our society."

Thank you all for your excellent response to our June 23 Alert and the many phone calls you generated into Senator Hutchison's office asking her to vote to confirm Leon Holmes. The fact that she aligned herself with Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and the rest of the Senate feminists on this vote won't be lost on Texas voters in the future. The roll call vote can be viewed here.

Log Cabin Republicans Happy With GOP Convention Speaker Line Up 
The homosexual group known as Log Cabin Republicans praised the Republican national convention for its choice of "inclusive, big-tent Republicans to speak in prime time at the convention in New York City," reports the June 30 issue of the Advocate.com, a self-described award-winning national gay and lesbian newsmagazine web site. "The speakers include former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, Arizona Senator John McCain, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and New York Governor George Pataki." "These speakers represent the future of the Republican Party," said Patrick Guerriero, executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans. "These Republicans are among the leading voices for inclusion in the GOP." McCain, Giuliani, Schwarzenegger, and Pataki have all been critical of what they call the "anti-gay" Federal Marriage Amendment. Each of these Republicans has a track record of running winning "inclusive" campaigns and of support for many issues critical to the gay and lesbian community, according to the Advocate.

Giuliani, Schwarzenegger and Pataki are ardently pro-abortion as well, as is New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman, and former finance chairman of the Republican National Committee Lew Eisenberg, all of whom are playing a major role in financing and organizing the Convention.

Reagan conservatives are, so far, not to be found among those who will present their views to the nation in prime time during the convention. A few pro-life, pro-family, pro-marriage conservatives, who, after all, represent those of us who are the stakes that hold up the "big tent," will probably be featured during the morning hours of the Convention, when the rest of the American people are busy with their daily duties and not watching television.

This sorry state of affairs prompted Kate O'Beirne, Washington editor of National Review, to point out in her 7/7/04 column, that the only announced Convention speaker who actually agrees with President Bush on major issues is a Democrat — Senator Zell Miller of Georgia! "When the only Reagan Republican to enjoy a prominent supporting role at the party's Convention is a Democrat, the GOP has a serious identity problem." "Given the political ambitions of some of the speakers, the party faithful should pray that Rockefeller Republicanism is not back in the future." [Is that an echo we hear?]