Video: Stewart takes ‘Gaywatch’ to Virginia

Stewart takes ‘Gaywatch’ to Virginia

Jon Stewart says “even the rainbow flag thinks that flag is gay”

During last fall's campaign for Virginia governor, Bob McDonnell ran was what Virginia Gazette calls a “smiling centrist”. Although he in the past been an outspoken social-conservative activist, McDonnell claimed last year that he would set all of that aside if elected and focus instead on economic issues.

On last night’s Daily Show, Jon Stewart offered his unique take on the issue. [see clip at end of post]

Steve Vaughn writes in the Gazette:

McDonnell said during his campaign for governor last year, it’s all about the economy. It’s not about divisive social issues. He was running as the smiling centrist, “Bob for Jobs” McDonnell.

The campaign tactic worked. McDonnell won in a landslide.

That was then. Now that he’s governor McDonnell has helped propel social conservative issues—especially anti-discrimination protections for LGBT people into the political spotlight in the state.

Video: Stewart takes ‘Gaywatch’ to Virginia [contd.]

Earlier this month, McDonnell refused to extend an executive order protecting LGBT people from workplace discrimination. And in a kind of social-conservative tag-team approach, Virginia’s attorney general, Ken Cuccinelli II has told the state’s colleges and universities that they do not have the authority to enforce rules that protect gay and lesbian workers from discrimination.

Cuccinelli’s order set off a firestorm, with protests on several of the state’s campuses.

That has apparently prompted the kinder-genter McDonnell of the campaign trial to step forward once again. Today, he issued what the Virginian-Pilot calls a “strongly worded edict” telling state agencies not to discriminate against gay and lesbian workers during the hiring process or in the workplace.

All of that has pushed the issue squarely into the forefront of the state’s politics, the Virginian-Pilot reports.

Legislators yesterday tried to force a vote on a bill that would encode anti-discrimination protections into law, but failed to muster the votes necessary to pass it, Richmond Times Dispatch reports: