Editorial Of The Day

From the editorial board of the Washington Post:

Over the 13 years that Mr. Delgaudio has represented the Sterling district, near Dulles International Airport in eastern Loudoun, that agenda has included aggressive and frequently acerbic homophobic positions. (Airport pat-downs by Transportation Security Administration personnel, he says, provide a dream job for “militant homosexuals.”) His bombast has extended to other pet peeves, such as Metro, which he calls “evil.” Mr. Delgaudio’s comportment has earned little credit for Loudoun County. But using taxpayer-funded resources to raise money for political uses goes beyond bias or buffoonery. It is a violation of public trust and ethics, as well as of Loudoun County’s policies. The FBI has made inquiries. [snip]

In addition to his position as a Loudoun County supervisor, Mr. Delgaudio’s other job involves raising money to vilify gay men and lesbians through a right-wing group called Public Advocate of the United States, which he leads. The Southern Poverty Law Center says Public Advocate is the only one of more than 1,000 hate groups in the country led by an elected official. It’s unclear whether Mr. Delgaudio commingles fundraising for Public Advocate with that for his political campaigns and charity; Loudoun residents have a right to know. What is clear is that Mr. Delgaudio, who won a fourth term in a low-turnout election last year and has three more years to serve, is tainting the reputation of the county and its board of supervisors.