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Quote UnQuote

Compiled by Rex Wockner

Published Thursday, 29-Oct-2009 in issue 1140

“I’m working with the Pentagon, its leadership and the members of the House and the Senate on ending this policy. ... I will end Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. That’s my commitment to you.”

Barack Obama at the Human Rights Campaign’s national dinner in Washington, D.C., Oct 10. The address was carried live on CNN.

“I was totally disappointed (by President Obama’s Oct. 10 speech to the Human Rights Campaign dinner). Our community let him off and we did not force him by coming to that dinner to (announce) substantial change. All we got was another ‘Please wait.’ He got an A-plus on the Cliff Notes version of our rights that we’re denied, but a C-minus on what he’s actually doing to take care of it.”

National Equality March Co-Director Robin McGehee to this column, Oct. 11.

“(W)hen they get out there on Sunday, Gay Nation ... needs to do everything in their power to scare the hell out of right-wing homophobes. I want to see you guys rollerblading down the Mall in nothing but a speedo and a nun’s habit, holding a sparkler in one hand and a penis popsicle in the other.”

HBO’s Bill Maher writing at The Huffington Post, Oct. 9.

“I think for me (the National Equality March) was a cause that I truly believe in. By and large in this country the issue of gay rights and equality should be past the point of debate. Really, there should be no debate anymore. For me, in my small platform as a professional football player, I understand that my time in the spotlight is probably limited. The more times you have to lend your name to a cause you believe in, you should do that.”

New Orleans Saints linebacker Scott Fujita to The Huffington Post, Oct. 7.

“Suspending enforcement of (Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell) – which the president has the authority to do – would instantly shift the debate to Congress. It would take DADT off the president’s plate. What to do about DADT would land on Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi’s plate. Scrap DADT? Reform DADT? It’s not the president’s problem anymore, it’s Congress’s problem. And if Congress didn’t act – and that’s a mighty small if – it would be a logistical nightmare for the next president, Democrat or Republican, to reverse Obama’s suspension of DADT. So long as the president refuses to remove DADT from his own plate – and I’m not holding my breath – I don’t have much sympathy for him where his plate is concerned. Yeah, there’s a lot on his plate. No doubt. But until he takes DADT off his plate I’m not interested in listening to him or his apologists whine.”

Writer Dan Savage on his blog, Oct. 10.

“During the primaries, Hillary Clinton portrayed (Obama) as a slick salesman who could not follow through on his grandiose promises. In the general election, John McCain said Obama was an empty ‘celebrity’ who would not deliver. Standing on principle for GLBT equality would go a long way in diffusing and dispelling this still-potent line of criticism.”

Syndicated gay-press columnist Wayne Besen, Oct. 6.

“One thing I have hated all my life are liars, and I live in a nation of them. It was not always the case. I don’t demand honor, that can be lies too. I don’t say there was a golden age, but there was an age of general intelligence. We had a watchdog, the media. (Now) they’re busy preparing us for an Iranian war.”

Gay writer Gore Vidal to The Times of London, Sept. 30.