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First openly gay presidential candidate running as Republican
Aug 15, 2011, 12:55 PM | Updated: Aug 16, 2011, 6:45 am
 Fred Karger is the first openly gay man to run for president of the United States (Facebook). |
The first openly gay man to run for president of the United States is looking for the Republican Party to back him.
Fred Karger tells 97.3 KIRO FM’s Ross and Burbank Show he’s been a Republican his entire life, and while he may disagree with some members of his party on social issues, he’s faithful to the basic tenets of the party, citing smaller government, strong national defense, and encouraging entrepreneurship.
“There’s room for a wide array of people on a whole array of issues,” says Karger of the party.
Karger, who retired after 27 years as a political consultant working on campaigns, including Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and Gerald Ford, says he’s a “unique” candidate with a different Republican voice to offer.
“A debate should be that, a difference of opinions between the participants, and the eight [Republican candidates] are pretty much in lockstep on all the major issues,” says Karger. “I want to stand up with all those candidates. Not one of the eight support marriage equality.”
Listen to Fred Karger: Fighting for the Presidency
Karger says he’s concerned the Republican Party has moved too far to the right, and even though he backed Hillary Clinton in the last presidential campaign, he’s not prepared to switch parties.
“The way to change is often from the inside,” says Karger. “We’ve got to remember we need both parties, and if every reasonable person were to abandon the Republican Party, then it would be completely dominated by the far right. I think that’s a danger to the civil liberties of all Americans.”
Karger says he’s running on a $25,000 a month budget and focusing his efforts on New Hampshire and Iowa to get a foot in the race.
“I’ve been doing as much media as I can to try and get my name ID up, and in all the polls. That was a battle, just to get included in the polls, but in all the polls from Gallup to Fox News to Symantec, they’ve been at 1 percent or 2 percent. I’m often tied with Tim Pawlenty, who just dropped out, of course, or Rick Santorum, or Jon Huntsman.”
By JAMIE GRISWOLD, MyNorthwest.com Editor
