An advocacy group for homosexuals organized a rally in Maine with bizarre pop phenomenon Lady Gaga the day before the Senate vote to lift the ban on open homosexuality in the military. The purpose was to sway Maine Senators Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe.
Choosing a flamboyant entertainer to promote homosexual interests turned out to be more revealing — and accurate — than they may have intended.
Lady Gaga’s takeaway line was: “I’m here today because I would like to propose a new law. A law that sends home the soldier that has the problem [with homosexuality]. Our new law is called, ‘If you don’t like it, go home.”
One of the intended targets was not impressed.
“I look to [Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman] Adm. Mike Mullen for my advice on ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’” Collins said in response to the event.
Without knowing it, bizarre Lady Gaga stumbled onto one of the primary problems with lifting the ban on homosexuality in the military. People with moral beliefs will be forced out of the military by their own convictions, sexual harassment concerns, or out of fear of being blackballed for their beliefs or kicked out by a zero-tolerance policy that would require military members to celebrate behavior that carries unhealthy physical and moral consequences.
So how did the Maine senators vote? Both Collins and Snowe, who want to force the military to allow open homosexuality, voted against the bill going forward — not because of the repeal, but because Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) restricted a full debate on the overall bill that contained several controversial measures.
In the end, Lady Gaga’s power to move the music industry didn’t translate into political power in Maine. Apparently, when it comes to “gay rights,” her heels are the only platform she has.