Less than two weeks after joining Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign as the GOP’s presumptive vice presidential candidate, U.S. Congressman Paul Ryan has publicly confirmed his erstwhile inner opportunist.

Ryan, who is “very proud of [his] pro-life record,” was faced with a choice between the dangling prize of the vice presidency and remaining true to the source of his pridefulness. Lo and behold, Ryan is surprisingly pro-choice, albeit in a 1-percent sort of way.

(Editor’s note: For the record, SDGLN Editor in Chief Ken Williams is a registered Democrat who is staying neutral in the San Diego mayoral race to maintain the ethical standards of journalism. Williams has won numerous awards during his 40 years in journalism, and previously worked at the San Diego Union-Tribune and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. With this commentary, Williams refutes the distortion of the truth by LGBT Weekly and Bob Filner.)


“Politics have no relation to morals.” -- Niccolo Machiavelli

On paper, you’d think a 42-year-old Republican would be up to speed on marriage rights, and might even, given his age, be tolerant.

To my surprise, Mitt Romney's vice presidential pick, U.S. Congressman Paul D. Ryan from Wisconsin, is not only no ally to our lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) communities — he’s completely ignorant of our struggle.

When it comes to the issue of marriage equality, Ryan has consistently voted it down.

In defending his stalwart stance for a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage Ryan stated:

For those in my gay community whining about all the good Sally Ride could have done had she only “come out;” I say — Get over yourself.

For most gays and lesbians, the hardest thing we will ever do in our lives is “come out.” It’s personal, and absolutely no one can dictate to you the time, day, or moment you have to come out. It’s a scary straight world, full of hate, anger, bigotry, ignorance, and people who want to do nothing more than make a mockery of your life.