That's the question Glenn Greewald wants answered. I do too. The background: the Log Cabin Republicans recently took out a single-page ad in the NYT to oppose the possible nomination of Republican Chuck Hagel to be secretary of defense. That's a head-scratcher all by itself. They don't have that much money lying around, and full-page NYT ads are expensive. I can see them finding the funds for such an ad if DOMA was at stake or if Hagel now opposed gay inclusion in the military or if he was a champion of the Christianist right or had not sincerely apologized to Hormel.
But because of foreign policy realism? Or skepticism toward military intervention after the catastrophes of Iraq and Afghanistan? I'm still scratching my head. And why would LCR take such a big step to oppose a man whom LCR's leader, R. Clark Cooper, described a few weeks ago thus:
"I recall working with Senator Chuck Hagel and his staff during the Bush administration and he was certainly not shy about expressing his criticisms. But despite his criticisms, Hagel voted with us most of the time and there was no question he was committed to advancing America's interests abroad. As for his nomination to be secretary of defense, it is well worth noting that Senator Hagel is a combat veteran who has hands-on experience in the field. The battlefield is not just theory for him."
Sounds like the sensible, candid Clark Cooper I know. The gay opposition to Hagel, moreover, comes from the purist left, which makes it even odder for LCR to hand over a moderate Republican nominee to the wolves of far-left groups like the National Gay And Lesbian Task Force. They almost always counter-balance them, especially when a Republican is involved. Glenn notes that opposition to marriage equality cannot possibly be the reason – since Hagel voted against the FMA and Log Cabin has endorsed countless Republicans far more hostile to gay equality than Hagel.
When Glenn asked Cooper about the financial backing for the ad, he replied that
the ad campaign "is being funded by a number of donors". But he not only refused to identify any of those donors, but also has thus far refused to say whether those "donors" are from the self-proclaimed "pro-Israel" community and/or are first-time donors to LCR.
That seems relevant to me. If some existing donors to LCR were asked by the board to finance a push against a Republican nominee, it would be strange but not completely out of order. But if new donors from the Greater Israel lobby paid for the ad, as part of their rather crude strategy of smearing Hagel by all possible means and angles, then it seems to me that Log Cabin Republican members and the wider gay community have a right to know who was behind this. And why.
The Dish 