Anti-Gay Marriage Guru Frank Schubert ... And What Our Strategy In Maine Might Have Been

Frank Schubert is the public relations guru behind the hate machine that grinds up civil rights of LGBT Americans and spits them through a chute like so much unwanted dross.  To fundie Christians who grease the gears with lies, Schubert is an expert mechanic.  He's the homobigot who decided to use little children to instill fear in voters, a sick strategy that led to the passing of Prop 8 in California and Question One in Maine.  According to Marcos Breton at The Sacramento Bee, Schubert is "a genuinely nice man who is just fantastic at what he does."  I would probably agree with the second part of that statement.  But then, a common thief can also be "fantastic at what he does."  And that's exactly what Schubert is.  A thief.  He breaks into the lives of committed same-sex couples and steals their happiness and security - and he does so without a twinge of conscience.

Breton writes:  His win in Maine halted a tide of momentum for gay marriage in several states.  "The premise (of gay marriage) is wrong," Schubert said from his office near the Capitol. "Advocates want people to believe they are on the right side of history. They are not."  Schubert was outnumbered and outspent in Maine, a supposedly libertarian state where "live and let live" is a regional mantra.  Unlike California, gay advocates in Maine highlighted their personal stories of love...  He tweaked the same California playbook for victory, diminishing a civil rights argument with TV ads exploiting the idea that kids would constantly be exposed to gay marriage teachings in school. 

This was our downfall in Maine.  We played nice.  Schubert and the anti-LGBT apparatus churned out fear.  We talked about love.  The "No on One" commercials shared a common theme: happy non-traditional families wanting nothing more than equal treatment under the law.  When gay foes brought the argument into the schoolroom, we should have done the same.  We should have run ads showing the hurt and rejection experienced by the children of same-sex couples whose parents are treated like second-class citizens. 

I wish there had been a television spot called "Collateral Heartbreak."

[Exterior. School playground. A little girl stands by the teeter totter, weeping softly.  A concerned teacher approaches her.]

Teacher:  What's wrong, Mary?
Mary:  They said my family isn't a real family.
Teacher:  Who said that?
[Mary points to a group of older boys huddled together, snickering.]
Mary (sniffling):  They said my mommies are bad people.
Teacher:  Those boys are wrong.  Your moms are wonderful people.
Voice Over:  When civil marriage is denied to loving same-sex couples, children like Mary can't answer this simple question ...
Mary:  Why isn't my family good enough?

Going back to Breton:  Schubert is so hard to beat because he embodies the deeply held intolerance for gay marriage in America.  His beliefs are rooted in a Catholic faith and biblical passages condemning gay sex.  (With right-wing Christians, it's always, always about the sex.)  He is a genuinely nice man (snort)  who is fantastic at what he does - a true believer with mad communication skills.  He feels compassion for the unfortunates in his path, but not mercy.  (Without mercy, there can be no compassion.  A self-professed Christian like Schubert should know that.)  He also realizes that with success comes a price:  That this issue obscures everything else in his thriving public affairs practice.  Being Mr. Anti-Gay Marriage could stick forever, though he hopes not.

Hope all you want, Mr. Schubert.  Your so-called legacy will be the same as that of deceased Alabama Governor George Wallace, who stood at the schoolhouse door to prevent African-American students from entering the building.  Like Wallace, you will be remembered for your bigotry. 

Comments

[Bee Girl]

I agree, our ads weren't agressive enough. I think the No on One folks did a good job, much better than the campaign in California - but we let the opposition define the conversation.

[Trent]

I like your commerical idea. We sit back and let them paint us as the bad guys. I'm tired of taking the high road.

[Aggie, Fair Haven, Vermont]

Why do any of us allow civil policy to be made on the basis of what someone's imaginary friend thinks? I still don't get that one...

[Elizabeth]

The religious right has miscalculated and disrupted the Republican equilibrium. They are very aggressive but not persuasive. While the dynamics of who is self identified as conservative or liberal has not changed much in the past decade (as most people are inflexible), something interesting is happening with the voters at the margin. The GOP is in danger of losing an entire wing of their party which will make it more difficult to govern and win national elections.

While the intention was to make the GOP a permanant majority party they seem to have done the opposite. They are becoming a Third Party consisting more of cheerleaders then serious intellectuals.