Arizona Vetoed, But Is The GOP Listening?

While on stage at the University of Miami on Wednesday night, Hillary Clinton broke the news that Arizona governor Jan Brewer had vetoed her state's "license to discriminate" bill, suggesting it could be a sign of the times. “Inclusive leadership is really what the 21st century is all about,” Clinton said to huge applause. Any shrewd political operator could have told you that, but what's unfortunate is how many in the Republican Party seem poised to overlook the significance of this moment.

Bills like Arizona's have been proposed by conservative factions all over the country, in Maine, Idaho, Tennessee, Georgia, Ohio, Kansas, Mississippi, South Dakota, Indiana, and Texas.

As I watched Rachel Maddow last night flash on screen a map of all the places where Republican lawmakers have considered kindred antigay laws, it reminded me of a similar map she'd often pull up for dramatic effect during the last election (the one in which Republicans unexpectedly lost seats in both the House and Senate). A rash of bills sought to limit abortion to smaller windows during pregnancy, or used quirks in law to virtually eradicate all clinics from the state, and some states even proposed those weird bills that required a physical exam to get an abortion and had Maddow nicknaming Bob McDonnell of Virginia as "Governor Ultrasound."

All of that wackiness was happening in the background when the likes of Todd Akin, who was running for Senate in Missouri, started making clueless comments about rape. The "War on Women" became a winning theme for Democrats. And if Republicans don't wake up soon, Democrats may dare to take advantage with the "War on Your Gay Neighbor."

http://www.advocate.com/commentary/lucas-grindley/2014/02/27/op-ed-arizona-vetoed-gop-listening