Rob Portman's Flip-Flop On Gay Rights

On March 14, 2013, Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) announced he had changed his stance on same-sex marriage. The change came as a result of his son Will coming out as gay to Portman and his wife in 2011. Before this, Sen. Portman's opposition to gay rights was reflected in his voting record. He co-sponsored the 1996 federal ban on same-sex marriage and in 1999 voted for a measure prohibiting same-sex couples in Washington, D.C. from adopting children. You can watch an exclusive interview with CNN in which Sen. Portman discusses changing his stance on same-sex marriage.

While I'm glad Sen. Portman has come over to my side on this issue, his change in stance seems hollow. Usually when it comes to social issues, it seems the only time conservatives can consider another perspective is when it affects them. One exception which comes to mind is when Rep. State Representative Maureen Walsh made a plea to fellow legislators about same-sex marriage in 2012. Even in that case, it's fair to question whether or not Rep. Walsh's feelings about same-sex marriage were changed by her daughter coming out as gay. However, whereas Walsh's speech was full of passion, humor and honesty, Portman came off as robotic and political.

Here is my question for conservatives: Why does it seem your side has to be personally affected by an issue in order to consider another perspective?

In the clip below, The Majority Report host Sam Seder (sitting on the right) and guest Cliff Schecter discuss Sen. Portman and other instances of conservative politicians changing their stance on positions only after they are affected personally by an issue.

Karma, Meet Marco Rubio

One of the dumbest GOP criticisms of President Obama is his use of a teleprompter. If you were to believe the GOP, you'd think President Obama was the first politician to use teleprompters. Even if he does rely on teleprompters when giving a speech, is it any worse than reading a speech that's on paper or index cards?!

One of the main critics of President Obama's teleprompter use is Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL). In the clip below, Sam Seder (host of the Majority Report) talks about Rubio's teleprompter cracks directed at the president and Rubio's mishap during a speech he gave on foreign policy at Brookings Institution on Wednesday.

Rick Santorum Say What?!

Having yet another controversial moment on the campaign trail (remember his "blah" controversy earlier this year?), GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum appears to have almost called President Obama a "nigger".  Santorum was speaking at a rally in Janesville, WI last week when the incident occurred.

In the clips below Sam Seder (host of "The Majority Report") and The Young Turks give their takes on what Santorum may have said.





After listening to the clip several times, I think Santorum caught himself just in time before he completely derailed any chance he might have of becoming POTUS. Although a part of me finds it hard to believe he could be so stupid as to come that close to making a racist remark in public, I can't come up with another word that he could have intended to say that makes any sense. Also, the nervous transition leads me to believe he's guilty. Because the evidence isn't conclusive, Santorum will be able to remain a thorn in Mitt Romney's side for at least a couple more months.

Do you think Rick Santorum almost called President Obama a "nigger"?