Dem Presidential Candidates Seek Support of Homosexual Activists
WASHINGTON -- Appearing before gay rights activists on Tuesday, most of the Democratic presidential field called for repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy in the military, but a majority said same-sex marriages should not be recognized.
In what organizers called an historic session, seven of the nine announced candidates spoke at a forum sponsored by the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest interest group for gay causes. The two Southern candidates, Sens. John Edwards of North Carolina and Bob Graham of Florida, did not appear but answered a questionnaire that the activist group sent to all the Democratic hopefuls.
"This marks the first time in our nation's history that a group of White House contenders has come together to speak specifically to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans," said Elizabeth Birch, executive director of the HRC, a political organization that...