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Is Andrew Sullivan Kicking Off A Media Frenzy Over Kagan’s Sexuality?

by Glynnis MacNicol | 12:14 pm, May 11th, 2010

» 22 comments

Is President Obama going to manage to get Elena Kagan confirmed to the Supreme Court without addressing her sexuality? Well, not if Andrew Sullivan has anything to do with it. Sullivan attacked Kagan’s sexuality, or the lack of public mention of it, in a series of posts yesterday, with a ferocity that was reminiscent of his determination to find out the true parentage of Trig Palin. It definitely got a lot of people’s attention (it didn’t hurt that Google was apparently interested also). Here is the thrust of Sullivan’s argument:

[W]e have been told by many that she is gay … and no one will ask directly if this is true and no one in the administration will tell us definitively.

In a word, this is preposterous – a function of liberal cowardice and conservative discomfort. It should mean nothing either way. Since the issue of this tiny minority – and the right of the huge majority to determine its rights and equality – is a live issue for the court in the next generation, and since it would be bizarre to argue that a Justice’s sexual orientation will not in some way affect his or her judgment of the issue, it is only logical that this question should be clarified. It’s especially true with respect to Obama. He has, after all, told us that one of his criteria for a Supreme Court Justice is knowing what it feels like to be on the wrong side of legal discrimination.

It should mean nothing either way (actually, it should probably fall in the realm of personal privacy) but of course it does more so now because Sullivan has turned his high watt internet spotlight on the issue. Add to that the fact that DADT and gay marriage are always hot button political issues and may go before the Supreme Court in the next decade and likely what you have is a story that is not going away. Furthermore, I have to wonder whether Obama has painted himself into a bit of a corner in his attempt not to address it. For a couple of reasons. In yesterday’s announcement of Kagan’s nomination Obama opted to “emphasize biography rather than ideology.”

She understands the law “as it affects the lives of ordinary people,” he said, adding that her presence will make the court “more reflective of us as a people than ever before.”

Which is likely Obama’s way of taking the glare off Kagan’s lack of paper trail. But if the focus turns to her “real life” in the “real world” it may invite focus on her personal life…judging by the fact both the Wall St. Journal and the New York Times ran pictures of Kagan playing 16 inch softball in college today the personal life interest appears to be there, and likely will only grow between now and the hearings. There’s also the fact that back in April the White House forced CBS to pull a blog post report that Kagan was gay and out of the closet.

A White House spokesman, Ben LaBolt, said he complained to CBS because the column “made false charges.” Domenech later added an update to the post: “I have to correct my text here to say that Kagan is apparently still closeted — odd, because her female partner is rather well known in Harvard circles.”

Odd that the White House would feel the need to react so strongly to that report moreover because in doing so they probably singlehandedly made it more of an issue than it otherwise might have been. Add to that the main qualm on the right about Kagan, which is that she tried to restrict military recruiters from the Harvard based on her opposition to DADT, an issue the Obama administration doesn’t have the greatest record on. And then add to that the fact that Kagan is not likely going to face much opposition from the left or the right and therefore the cablers and the blogosphere will need to latch on to something controversial, (Michael Triplett explores how they might approach it here) and I suspect what you have is a perfect storm that could easily result in a national conversation about gay rights.

Andrew Sullivan, dadt, Elena Kagan, SCOTUS, The State of Journalism, The State of Politics, Trig Palin

badr

http://hillbuzz.org/2010/05/10/do-elena-kagan-and-charlie-crist-go-to-halloween-parties-together/ Syllivan is just mad she can’t be in this pic.
SteveMG

It’s interesting – and revealing – that among Sullivan’s first posts on Ms. Kagan that he didn’t discuss her views on the Commerce Claus, or a public exception standard for Miranda, or alien rights, or the constitutionality of the individual mandate in healthchare.

Y’know, real matters? No, he tries to pry into her personal sexual life.

No one cares who she shares her bed with. With a man, a woman, or with no one. It doesn’t matter, Mr. Sullivan.

It’s obvious that for whatever reasons, Ms. Kagan has kept her private life just that: private. Let’s let her decide whether or not she wants to make it public.

Meawhile, what kind of Justice will she be?
badr

Obviously we have come to accept that Syllivan is crazy.
sarainitaly

For a gay guy, Sullivan sure is obsessed with the comings and goings of the female va jay jay.

Very dumb of the Obama administration to react so strongly, and negatively, though. It’s almost like they are ashamed of her gayness. Reminds me of the strong reaction to those who initially thought he was muslim.

I think the denials and refusals to just acknowledge it, at this point, will hurt her. Now it seems like a big dirty secret, instead of a plain ol’ fact, a fact that millions of other people around the world live with.

If she’s going to hide her true self, it makes one wonder what else she would hide.
homie

“For a gay guy, Sullivan sure is obsessed with the comings and goings of the female va jay jay.”

I do believe he has an ulterior motive. The righties, though they’ll present a little theatrical display, want Kagan on the court as much as Obama does, perhaps moreso.
homie

“Obviously we have come to accept that Syllivan is crazy.”

Like a fox.
homie

“No one cares who she shares her bed with. ”
Wanna bet?

“Meawhile, what kind of Justice will she be?”

A supporter of yet more aggressive expansion of executive power, thats what kind.
Not beneficial to citizens of any political stripe, save those who are fool enough to embrace totalitarianism.
SteveMG

“No one cares who she shares her bed with. ”
Wanna bet?

It was a figurative statement not a literal one.

Some people care about leprechauns too.

Who she sleeps with or doesn’t sleep with tells me nothing about her judicial views.
murphy0071

Unfortunately there are some Gays, like Sullivan, who see Gays everywhere and thinks it is cute to out people, regardless of facts. Maybe he has “Gaydar” because of some special gift from his master Satan. I don’t believe in “Gaydar” or Satan, but obviously many Americans do.
aimlowjoe

I know Ms. Kagan is ten times smarter than me and frankly I don’t if she is gay or straight.
I just have a lot of trouble looking at her. She has a face only a mother could love. That is pretty much my shallow criteria for public office. You have to look decent enough for me not to turn to stone when I see you. I know I am not right here. I know I am being petty. I am going to try and open my heart. It won’t be easy.

Aimlow Joe was here
http://www.aimlow.com
PureFreedom

She will be approved and she is alot better then what he could have appointed.
BTW, Mediaite where are your stories about Obama”s stupid remark about getting rid of your ipods and xboxes because it will distract you from his message?
http://www.facebook.com/people/Ed-Durffee/1311278663 Ed Durffee

I really dont care what makes her tick either, JUST as long as she has no influence on the lives of American people. But when you sit on Any Court, you can and will do just that.
thelowedown

It is entirely possible that she is asexual. Is that such a hard thing for people to grasp? Some people just aren’t attracted sexually to others. That’s not a bad thing. If she’s a lesbian, who cares? I don’t. If she’s straight, who cares? I don’t.
JazzDrummer7

SO WHAT SHE’S GAY…??? A person’s sexuality has nothing to do with a person’s intelligence. And to prove it, just listen to the Teabaggers. They’re a bunch of idiots and they’re all straight and white. Whenever anybody tries to make an issue out of somebody’s sexual persuasion, the only response one should fmake is “so what?”. As a straight, white drummer who’s played many theatre productions, I have met many gay actors who are very intelligent and they are all a really nice bunch of people. On the other hand, I’ve met many straight actors who were pretty stupid and fairly asinine..!! Andrew Sullivan and the likes of his type of journalist can go to hell.
JazzDrummer7

One more thing; one has to be pretty insecure and unsure of themselves to ever worry about somebody else’s sexuality. Hey Andrew Sullivan, what the hell are you afraid of. We have enough right-wing assholes who have been going birdseed ever a black man was elected President. They are so afraid a black man is going to be a great President that their is no level to which Minority Leader Rush Limbaugh, Minority Speaker Glen Beck, and their subordinates, the GOP, to which they will lower themselves. The only people stupider than them are the people who actually believe the psunami of lies that has been coming from all of them since President Obama has been elected. It is just un-fucking-believable..!!
murphy0071

Sullivan is a malignant narcissist and sociopath. If you believe anything out of his mouth, you are a bigger fool than he is. If she were really Gay, there would be plenty of evidence and there is absolutely none. And, who cares if more than one sexual orientation is found on the Supreme Court. Research shows that Gays as a group have much higher I.Q.s than heterosexuals. Every research, regardless of population, has shown gays to have an I.Q. at least 15 points or one standard deviation above heterosexuals.

Based on decades of research, clinical practice, and more than 450 authoritative references, homosexuality is not a “lifestyle.” Homosexuality and sexual behavior differences result from sexual center variations in the brain. Homosexuality, excepting adult onsets caused by brain changes due to viruses, tumors, and injuries, are related to hormonal conditioning of the developing brain during fetal development. Homosexuals, when compared to heterosexuals, differ in hormonal differences and responses, uncontrollable reflexes, functional MRI readings, neuroanatomy, etc. Using thousands of subjects, Bell and Weinberg, social psychologists, state “Among both men and women in our study, there is a powerful link between gender nonconformity and the development or homosexuality.” . . . “At the moment, a large body of convincing research appears to suggest a biological foundation for homosexuality.”
Same-sexed partnerships are known to exist in higher mammals and in many intelligent species. Over 250 species show same-sexed attraction and some life long bonding.

It is too bad that public figures can’t sue the likes of Sullivan. He represents only himself and bigots like Sarah Palin.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Bob-Amsel/1450316715 Bob Amsel

Conservatives don’t have “discomfort” with Kagan’s sexuality, whatever it is. They’re having a field day. I just responded to a homophobic email that the GOP is secretly circulating to millions of Republicans and Fundamentalist Christians:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/5/11/15184/0540?new=true

Additionally, Sullivan is probably p.o.’d in regard to his own public outing when he was exposed advertising for men to have bareback sex with, despite his HIV-positive status. Now, it’s HIS turn to get even.
SC Citizen

Well, she was married to Morgan Fairchild.
http://none pyrope

You got Janet Napolitano, Hillary Clintone, and now Elena Kagan. Maybe ol’ Sullivan was trying to apply the “three dykes rule.”

(As for M_. Kagan, in all honesty, I must confess that had I been born female, I would have been a lesbian, too.)
brendonstyrish

It 'clear that for some reason, Ms. Kagan has kept his private life just that private. Let's let him decide if he wants to make public.

personal injury Houston
http://kakoluri.com/ Gypsy Chief

Who is Andrew Sullivan? Isn’t he the one who advertises Oxi-Clean on TV ??? Why should anyone care what he thinks? I do think that in some parts of the country Elena Kagan’s sexuality or lack of it will be a huge issue. Why should our country continue to be dragged down by opinions in the most backward region? And then this story comes at the ideal time see “Baptist Minister Rents Trouble” … which leads to new tee shirt … My RentBoy Can Beat Up Your RentBoy … Is Cafe Press selling these yet?

Gypsy Chief
http://kakoluri.com/
shameless blog plug
murphy0071

thelowedown said:
It is entirely possible that she is asexual. Is that such a hard thing for people to grasp? Some people just aren’t attracted sexually to others. That’s not a bad thing. If she’s a lesbian, who cares? I don’t. If she’s straight, who cares? I don’t.

There are persons born with unformed sexual mating centers in the ventral medial hypothalamus. These persons are usually seen as asexual. Also, viruses can attack the area and change sexual orientation as in Kluver-Bucey Syndrome. Associate Justice Kagan, if a foreigner would not be allowed asylum as a Gay, because according to the latest court decisions, she wouldn’t be considered Gay because she isn’t socialized as a Gay.

“Nonsense” is the word of the day when it comes to how Americans think about sexuality. Unfortunately, we have the most ignorant and uneducated citizens in the industrial world.