Nimer said he had been considering a bid for office for some time, but had anticipated running for city or county council.

“This is a bigger spot and a bigger jump than I’d anticipated,” he said.

…

Nimer said he believes sexual orientation will not be an issue in the campaign. Voters have shown their willingness to vote for a gay candidate when they elected Scott McCoy to the Senate in 2008, he said, and McAdams has been a strong ally to the gay community.

“More than anything else, what I’m doing is giving the Republicans and independents an alternative to vote for,” Nimer said. “I bring a different viewpoint to this stuff. I am a conservative Republican as far as limited government and individual responsibility.”

If he wins, Nimer would be the first openly gay Republican legislator in the state. There have been three gay Democrats in the Legislature. Nimer said he doesn’t anticipate any problems with the Republican caucus, which includes several conservatives who have been hostile toward gay issues.

“I’m not a new kid. I’ve been a Republican my whole life, and I know a lot of people on the Hill already. They’re friends and associates of mine,” Nimer said.

Read more in the Salt Lake City Tribune.

In a message e-mailed to the Log Cabin Republicans (LCR) of San Diego County, Ryan Trabuco, vice president of the local chapter, noted his organization’s participation in the party’s voter registration efforts.

“A few months ago, [chapter] President Will Rodriguez-Kennedy and myself took the initiative for LCR San Diego to provide a helping hand in our party’s voter registration efforts. Will and I both feel that the news today is a victory not just for LCR, but for us as Republicans going forward,” Trabuco said.

This just goes to show the impact that our chapters can have as part of the greater Republican Party.  Great job, LCR San Diego!

There is a strong conservative case to be made in favor of gay marriage. Marriage is an institution that strengthens and stabilizes society. It is an institution that has the capacity to bring profound joy and happiness to people and it is a matter of equality and keeping faith of one of the charters of the nation, the right to live your life.

 More and more conservatives are saying that opposition to gay marriage would not be a litmus test for membership in the GOP. And more conservatives are making the case that no more do you want big government conservatives in the bedroom than big government liberals telling you how to live your life.

This echoes his message to Log Cabin Republicans in April, 2009, where he said:

I, and I believe most people, believe you are born with your sexuality. It is not a choice. It should offend us as Republicans and Americans when gays are denigrated as degenerates or un-American or undeserving of the government’s protection of their rights. And the Republican Party should give voice to genuine outrage when anyone belittles the humanity of another person. It is offensive in the extreme to the values of this nation, and we should be in the forefront of rejecting such truly un-American prejudice. Moreover, if you believe we are born with our sexual orientation, it is hard to deny the inequality under the law that exists when people of one sexual orientation are allowed to marry and people of another are not.

Even though a majority of Republicans remain opposed to it, we must respect dissent on the subject within the party and encourage debate over it, and should not reject out of hand and on specious grounds the question that the party might be in the wrong on the question. We should publicly affirm that gays are entitled to the same respect and protections we accord heterosexuals to be secure from discrimination in their employment and the places they choose to live; to enter into contractual relationships with another person that grant them the same benefits and privileges allowed married couples, such as tax advantages accorded married couples or the responsibilities to make end of life decisions for one another.

Schmidt will be joining former Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman, Mary Cheney, Ambassador and Nicole Wallace, former Congressman Michael Huffington, former Governor Christine Todd Whitman, former Governor Bill Weld, former FEC Chairman Michael Toner, Fox News Contributor Margaret Hoover and many more at a fundraiser to benefit the American Foundation for Equal Rights, the organization that is seeking to overturn California’s Proposition 8. 

In an interview with the Daily Caller about a potential 2012 Presidential run, Bolton specifically addressed the subject of allowing gay and lesbian servicemembers to serve openly:

Asked about the president’s plan to repeal ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’ Bolton said he is generally in favor of allowing anyone who wants to serve their country in the military to do so.

“I don’t have any trouble with that [repealing ‘Don’t Ask, ‘Don’t Tell] assuming it is done in a way that is respectful of the people in the military who have great difficulty with it,” he said. “I don’t think there is any good answer to the question why shouldn’t gays and lesbians who want to serve their country be allowed to do it.”

Read more of Bolton’s interview in the Daily Caller.

Any tension between mainstream conservatives and social conservatives is less of an issue within Republican circles during the 2010 election cycle than previous cycles. Why? We lost and we lost big in 2008, which forced all Republicans to re-evaluate strategy, tactics and messaging with voters.

Many in party leadership came to realize that any sort of identity politics or wedge social issues had a diminishing political return and cut into our party’s broad base. Log Cabin Republicans has long advocated that the Republican National Committee focus on the core conservative principals of individual liberty and individual responsibility. From those two basic conservative principals, the L.C.R. helps the Republican leadership advance candidates and policies supportive of a free market economy, fiscal responsibility, immigration reform, strong national defense and a confident foreign policy.

Mr. Mehlman’s recent revelation that he is gay is actually good news for the party. He joins a growing chorus of elected Republican officials and well-known Republicans who support full civil rights, including former Vice President Cheney, former Solicitor General Ted Olson, former First Lady Laura Bush, as well as my former State Department colleagues Ambassador John Bolton and Ambassador Mark Wallace.

Inclusion isn’t just the right thing to do – it is also smart politics. Today’s voters believe that people should be judged by the content of their character, not by their sexual orientation. This is entirely consistent with the traditional Republican respect for the individual. Promoting that value will help us win in at the ballot box. Also, openly gay Republicans running for office like L.C.R. member, Richard Tisei, candidate for Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor, and former L.C.R. Board Member, Steve May, candidate for the Arizona Legislature, help personify diversity in the party.

Fortunately, the Republican National Committee and the campaign entities, the National Republican Congressional Campaign Committee and the National Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee are making strong efforts to focus on common conservative themes. These entities have reached out to Log Cabin Republicans to help revitalize the party. Inclusion will help Republicans rebuild the party base and regain a majority in Congress that can benefit all Americans.

Who could have called it in 2003: Arnold Schwarzenegger, the body-building terminator who originally showcased his brutish masculinity as a campaign centerpiece and once called Democrats “girlie men,” could go down in history as California’s most gay-friendly governor to date. (emphasis added)

Check it out here.

“Log Cabin Republicans is very supportive and appreciative of Ken’s coming out. Being gay and being conservative are not mutually exclusive,” said Log Cabin Republicans Executive Director R. Clarke Cooper.  “As a fellow Bush alumnus, I also look forward to Ken helping me and our colleagues build a stronger and more inclusive Republican Party. Nothing presents a better argument for the equality of gay and lesbian citizens than the reality of our lives as responsible members of society.  I am happy that Ken has come to a place where he can take a stand with integrity, and I welcome him as yet another conservative, common-sense voice to join with Log Cabin Republicans and all Americans in this important dialogue.”

“The process of coming out, and certainly coming out in the public eye, is never an easy one, but I am glad that Ken has decided to take this step and am glad that he is doing so on behalf of the fight for equality,” said former Republican Congressman Jim Kolbe. “As somebody who took my own journey and came out later in life, I have a great deal of respect for him doing this on his own terms. Ken joins a chorus that includes Laura Bush, Dick Cheney, Ted Olson, and countless others advocating for the American value of inclusion. This is not a time for playing politics; it is a time for us all to join together–Republicans and Democrats–to repeal the failed ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy, to pass workplace non-discrimination, and to recognize all committed relationships. The responsibility for making this happen lies with the Democratic leadership in Congress and in the White House who set the legislative agenda.”

Herbert met Tuesday with leaders from not only the Utah Log Cabin Republicans — an LGBT group that has endorsed Herbert — but also Equality Utah, the Utah Pride Center and the Human Rights Campaign. “You’re all part of the fabric of Utah,” Herbert told the crowd of 150 people, most of whom were LGBT community members. “We want to make sure you are appreciated, loved and supported.”

Herbert did not discuss specific political issues that affect the LGBT community, saying the reception at the governor’s mansion was a “social event.” He also praised the support of his wife, Jeanette, and noted their 40th wedding anniversary this year.

“I’m very impressed the governor is willing to meet with the LGBT community,” Eric Ethington, founder of PrideInUtah.com, said after the event.

…

Herbert was joined at the event by several other Republican leaders, including Lt. Gov. Greg Bell, state and Salt Lake County party chairmen, West Valley City Mayor Mike Winder and Taylorsville Mayor Russ Wall. Both mayors have helped to pass anti-discrimination protections in their cities for gay and transgender residents.

“It’s the right thing to do,” Wall said in an interview, noting that he supports a statewide law. “It’s a group of people who are discriminated against, and really, for no reason other than they’re different.”

James Humphreys, vice president of the Utah Log Cabin Republicans, said he views Herbert as “neutral,” but not necessarily “friendly” toward LGBT issues.

“In Utah, that is certainly a step forward in most cases,” Humphreys said. “He and [the lieutenant governor] are very willing to sit down and discuss any issue with anyone. That gives us an opportunity to have meaningful discussions.”

Read more about the reception in the Salt Lake City Tribune.

A successful businessman, former Army reservist (discharged under DADT) and firm advocate for the GOP values of fiscal responsibility and individual liberty, Log Cabin Republicans is proud to support Steve May for the Arizona State House of Representatives.  For more about his campaign, see here.

The first reception was in 2007 during the governorship of Republican Jon Huntsman, who made several strides in reaching out to Utah’s gay and transgender community during his time in office, going so far as to publicly support civil unions. The reception, said LCR President Mel Nimer, was part of Huntsman’s effort to promote the group within his party and to “build some bridges” between Republicans and gays.

After President Obama appointed Huntsman as U.S. Ambassador to China in 2009, Gov. Gary Herbert kept up the tradition. In fact, Nimer said that Herbert called him shortly after taking office to let them know they’d be invited to the governor’s annual reception.

“He wanted to carry on Huntsman’s tradition as part of his open door policy,” he said. “Being a Republican organization representing the [gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender] community we do have the ear of the Governor and Lt. Governor.” And even though both officials aren’t always supportive of pro-gay and transgender legislation, Nimer added that LCR’s leadership know they can talk to them and that ‘they see we’re just regular people.’

…

Some topics of discussion at the reception, said Nimer, are those that have recently received widespread attention among Utah’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender population, and which QSaltLake has recently covered.

“We’re hoping to work with the governor on dealing with the suicides and drug use and those kinds of issues both within our LGBT community and within the Utah community in general,” he said, refering to the suicides of three young, gay Utah men in July and the widespread use of methamphetamines, particularly among men who have sex with men in the state.

Gov. Herbert and Lt. Gov. Greg Bell will speak at the event. Clarke Cooper, the newly-appointed executive director of the national Log Cabin Republicans, will also be in attendance.

Read more about the reception at QSaltLake.com.