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I don’t know which the Republicans fear more - gay men or powerful women. It seems that their sense of manliness is threatened by both.
Just a hypothetical - Suppose a highly qualified Democratic woman who had been divorced twice and married three times became a presidential candidate. I can’t even think of the names she would be subjected to by her Republican opponents. However, it doesn’t seem to matter that two of the Republican candidates, Giuliani and McCain have had multiple marriages.
The way I see it is this: In the Republican Manly Man Club, multiple marriages or adulterous affairs are acceptable because these men have proven their virility or manliness by having sex with a woman. However, in the Republican Manly Man Club, a homosexual liaison is not acceptable because, in their eyes, the man is a girlie man and not a real man and, therefore, must be ostracized from their club.
I don’t understand the psychology behind their thinking. However, it seems that they are threatened by anyone who detracts from their own self-righteous concept of manliness.