To say that the Bush administration sees gays and lesbians as morally reprehensible is, sadly, not going too far. Bush agreed to meet with the gay and lesbian group known as the Log Cabin Republicans as part of his 2000 campaign, but only after he was forced to and even so he was battered by the howls of "catering to the homosexual agenda!" from the far right of his party.

We're not sure just what a "homosexual agenda" entails, unless it means the freedom to live a life as full and as free as any other person, but somehow we're guessing that's not what they meant. Bush opposes granting domestic partners the right to health and tax benefits enjoyed by heterosexual couples who are married, which is the very least they deserve, to say nothing of addressing the broken "don't ask, don't tell" policy in the military or bringing gay and lesbian issues into the national discourse.

Queer rights are the civil rights movement of our time, and let's not forget who had to drag the non-believers into the right last time: the federal government. Yes, it was the power of the presidency and its friend the Justice Department that forced the south to integrate and, slowly, began to change minds. You're not doing the job this time, Mr. President, and some day, when queer relationships are as accepted as mixed race schools or an integrated army, you'll be ashamed. Just ask Trent Lott.