GOProud will return to CPAC next month after two years of being banned. But they won't be allowed to have a booth or sign on as a sponsor. Via the
National Journal:
The dispute with GOProud dates back to 2011, when a number of socially conservative groups, including the Heritage Foundation and the Family Research Council, objected to the group's involvement and declined to participate. Insults were traded between GOProud leaders and ACU board members, culminating in the group's exclusion. Two former GOProud summer interns, Ross Hemminger and Matt Bechstein, took over last summer and sought to repair the bitterly frayed relationship. Under a compromise reached last week, they will attend the March 6-8 gathering as guests, without sponsorship or a booth. GOProud sees the lower-profile role as an important first step. "We really just want to be part of the conservative movement," said Hemminger, a veteran of the losing Senate campaigns by Scott Brown and Gabriel Gomez in Massachusetts. "We want to establish a fruitful and respectful relationship." Dan Schneider, executive director of the ACU, praised the GOProud directors for their "new vision" of promoting conservative principles from gun rights to opposition to abortion. "We welcome GOProud's attendance at this year's CPAC conference," Schneider said in an e-mail. "I believe their presence could help establish a productive relationship in the future."
Also attending this year: Rick Santorum, Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Chris Christie, Donald Trump, Bobby Jindal, Marco Rubio, Rick Perry, Mike Huckabee, Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, Jim DeMint and many, many more anti-gay crazies.
Labels: CPAC, GOProud, Quislings, Tea Party
