With less than 30 days until the 2024 general election, a group of gay conservatives, the Log Cabin Republicans, are hosting a fundraiser on Wednesday in Newtown, Pa., called “Trump Unity Newtown Square,” where prominent gay conservatives are throwing their weight behind former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio U.S. Sen. JD Vance. While the event is touted as a show of unity within the conservative LGBTQ+ community, it has sparked outrage from LGBTQ+ advocates who point to Trump and Vance’s extensive records of attacking LGBTQ+ rights and the inclusion of highly controversial figures as special guests.
Richard Grenell, the gay former U.S. ambassador to Germany under Trump, is headlining the event. Grenell has remained one of Trump’s most loyal defenders despite the former president’s actions to roll back LGBTQ+ protections. His defense of Trump’s record has put him at odds with many in the broader LGBTQ+ community, who see Trump’s policies as directly harmful.
The event’s list of far-right special guests is contributing to the controversy surrounding the event. David Leatherwood, a former board member of Gays Against Groomers, is among the event’s featured guests. Leatherwood has publicly endorsed the dangerous “groomer” smear, a false accusation that equates LGBTQ+ people with child predators. Far-right groups have increasingly used this baseless attack to justify anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and violence.
Scott Presler, another special guest, is a far-right conspiracy theorist who has also promoted the “groomer” narrative. Presler has built a following in conservative circles by endorsing discredited conspiracy theories and perpetuating anti-LGBTQ+ tropes.
Chadwick Moore, the gay biographer of disgraced former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, is also set to attend. Moore briefly worked for The Advocate and its sibling publication Out before 2017. However, he has since become a vocal critic of LGBTQ+ advocacy, aligning himself with conservative media figures like Carlson, who push anti-LGBTQ+ talking points.
U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, another special guest, is no stranger to controversy. Gaetz is facing increasing pressure, both legally and politically, after being implicated in a series of scandals involving underage girls. As The Advocate reported, newly unsealed civil court documents allege that Gaetz attended a drug-fueled party in 2017 involving a 17-year-old girl. Multiple eyewitnesses and corroborating evidence, including geolocation data, placed Gaetz at the party, hosted by his close ally, lobbyist Chris Dorworth. The allegations come on the heels of a 2021 confession letter from Gaetz’s associate, Joel Greenberg, who admitted to arranging sexual encounters for the congressman with underage girls. Gaetz has not been charged with any crimes.
Gaetz has continued to back Trump’s false assertions about transgender youth. After the September presidential debate between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, Gaetz stood in the spin room and reiterated Trump’s debunked claim that children are receiving gender-affirming surgeries in schools. When questioned by The Advocate, Gaetz sidestepped the falsehood, instead focusing on “parental rights,” a far-right talking point that he and Trump have used to push anti-LGBTQ+ policies.
The most eyebrow-raising guest is Aaron Schock, the former U.S. representative from Illinois who resigned from Congress in 2015 amid a scandal involving misuse of taxpayer funds. Schock came out as gay years after leaving office, but his voting record in Congress included opposition to LGBTQ+ rights, such as voting against the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell.” Despite now living as an out gay man, Schock has faced backlash for his hypocrisy and failure to stand up for LGBTQ+ rights while in office. This would be his first foray back into politics since he left office.
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Brian Sims, a gay former Pennsylvania lawmaker and the new CEO of Agenda PAC, condemned the event and the individuals attending.
“It’s outrageous and deeply disturbing to see LGBTQ+ individuals like Rick Grenell, Scott Presler, and Aaron Schock aligning themselves with a figure like Matt Gaetz—someone who’s been credibly accused of grooming,” Sims told The Advocate. “The irony is sickening: they claim to be against grooming, yet they stand side-by-side with a man who’s the real threat.”
Sims called the event “a betrayal of the LGBTQ+ community, pure and simple. These people are selling out their own for a shot at power and relevance, all while pushing an agenda that actively undermines our rights and safety. As a former Pennsylvania lawmaker and CEO of Agenda PAC, I’ve seen what happens when LGBTQ+ individuals align with the very forces that work to strip us of our humanity. Pennsylvania deserves better than this parade of self-serving traitors.”
During his presidency, Trump enacted a series of policies that stripped away protections for LGBTQ+ Americans. These included a ban on transgender individuals serving in the military, a rollback of health care protections for transgender people, and arguments in court defending businesses’ right to discriminate against LGBTQ+ employees. Trump’s Department of Justice intervened in cases to argue that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 did not protect workers from being fired for their gender identity or sexual orientation. In addition, his administration pushed for federally funded religious organizations, including adoption and foster care agencies, to be allowed to deny services to LGBTQ+ Americans.
Trump also appointed numerous judges with solid anti-LGBTQ+ records, including Leonard Grasz, who served on the board of a group that opposed marriage equality and anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people, according toThe Hill. His appointment of John K. Bush, a judge who had used antigay slurs in public, further cemented his administration’s opposition to LGBTQ+ equality. Trump has vowed to roll back transgender rights and stand in the way of progress for the trans community should he win a second term.
Human Rights Campaign National Press Secretary Brandon Wolf highlighted the dangers of a second Trump presidency in a statement to The Advocate. “A majority of LGBTQ+ Americans know which candidate to count on when it comes to fighting for our right to live and love, and that candidate is Vice President Harris,” Wolf said. “Don’t be fooled, Donald Trump led the most anti-LGBTQ+ administration in history, appointing anti-equality judges, banning transgender people from serving in the military, and arguing that businesses should have a right to refuse service to LGBTQ+ customers. To call his record anything but hateful is a revisionist lie. The Harris-Walz ticket is the only ticket that will deliver on a vision of freedom and equality for all.”
Vance also has a lengthy record of opposition to LGBTQ+ rights. Vance made it clear that he opposes same-sex marriage, saying that marriage should be between one man and one woman. He also opposed the Respect for Marriage Act, which codified protections for same-sex and interracial marriages, calling it a “bizarre distraction.” Vance’s introduction of a bill to ban gender-affirming care for minors further alarmed LGBTQ+ advocates, who argue that it targets vulnerable transgender youth. Vance has also embraced dangerous rhetoric labeling LGBTQ+ people as “groomers,” a baseless accusation that civil rights organizations have widely condemned. Vance has used this smear to attack LGBTQ+ advocates.
The Advocate contacted the Log Cabin Republicans for comment regarding the event and the inclusion of controversial figures, but the organization did not respond to questions about the endorsements of Trump and Vance or the presence of individuals who have promoted harmful rhetoric against the LGBTQ+ community.
David E. Moore, president and founder of the Pennsylvania Equality Project, called out the event’s harm in a statement to The Advocate.
“While we are supportive of the broader LGBTQ+ community, we cannot turn our backs on the most marginalized within our community,” Moore said. “Donald Trump and JD Vance’s policy proposals, whether in Project 2025 or Agenda 47, are disastrous to the LGBTQ+ community.”
He said that while the Log Cabin Republicans are entitled to think however they want, “they are bringing real harm to the rest of us,” adding, “That harm comes from rolling back the civil rights causes we have worked hard to achieve over decades. Within the GOP is an entire faction of people who refer to the LGBTQ+ community as ‘groomers’ and ‘pedophiles.’ Neither Donald Trump nor JD Vance have taken any steps to dissuade those Republicans from attacking our civil rights all across the country. Simply put, if the LGBTQ+ community is ‘woke,’ the Log Cabin Republicans are sound asleep.”
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