National Review slams Al Cardenas' CPAC for excluding conservative gays and Chris Christie

The Republican/conservative National Review slammed the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) because it "has excluded the gay conservative group GOProud and declined to invite New Jersey governor Chris Christie" from its March 14-16 conference in Washington.

"The sponsors and organizers of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) are voluntary associations that are of course entitled to advocate conservative causes as they see fit, including by controlling who is and who is not invited to participate in the conference," writes the National Review. "But as friends of CPAC and fellow conservative advocates, we nevertheless regret that CPAC has excluded the gay conservative group GOProud and declined to invite New Jersey governor Chris Christie."

CPAC is chaired by Miami's Al Cardenas, former head of the Republican Party of Florida.

Cardenas is long on record distancing himself from GoProud (the conservative gay group was also excluded from the 2012 CPAC conference) and declaring his opposition to marriage equality for gay and lesbian couples: “Not a Ronald Reagan conservative," as he described himself in 2011.

From his CPAC bio: Al Cardenas was born in Havana, Cuba in 1948 and came to the United States with his parents at the age of 12. Today, he and his wife of 33 years, Diana, reside in Key Biscayne, Florida. They have five children and five grandchildren.

Two years ago, Diana Cardenas made national news after I published her views on gay rights following a public Facebook wall conversation she had with GOP activist Ana Navarro (who last week signed a Supreme Court brief in favor of gay marriage) and others.

Diana Cardenas : I am just tired of this topic being shoved in our face continually by all these gay activists and I have to ventilate my feelings.... You know I always wondered why homosexuals are referred to as 'gay', kind of an oxymoron? Nothing really 'gay' about them or their movement......I am all for intellectual honesty too!!

Click here to read the complete Facebook exchange, which someone deleted after Diana Cardenas got into hot water.

Accused Scottish Cardinal Keith O'Brien admits sexual failings, apologizes and asks forgiveness

BY RAPHAEL SATTER, ASSOCIATED PRESS

LONDON -- The cardinal who until recently served as Britain's highest-ranking Catholic leader on Sunday acknowledged having engaged in unspecified sexual misbehavior and promised to play "no further part" in the public life of the church, a statement that comes at an awkward time for the Vatican.

Cardinal Keith O'Brien resigned Monday from his position as archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh after a newspaper published unnamed priests' accounts of unspecified inappropriate behavior.

O'Brien initially rejected the claims, saying he was resigning because he did not want to distract from the upcoming conclave of cardinals that is due to pick a successor to Benedict XVI, who resigned the papacy Thursday. O'Brien also said he would not attend the conclave.

But on Sunday, the Catholic church in Scotland issued a statement quoting O'Brien as saying that there had been times "that my sexual conduct has fallen below the standards expected of me as a priest, archbishop and cardinal."

"To those I have offended, I apologize and ask forgiveness," the statement continued. "To the Catholic church and people of Scotland, I also apologize. I will now spend the rest of my life in retirement. I will play no further part in the public life of the Catholic church in Scotland."

Click here to read more.

Lech Walesa shocks Poland with anti-gay words

BY VANESSA GERA, ASSOCIATED PRESS

WARSAW, Poland -- Lech Walesa, the Polish democracy icon and Nobel peace prize winner, has sparked outrage in Poland by saying that gays have no right to a prominent role in politics and that as a minority they need to "adjust to smaller things."

Some commentators are now suggesting that Walesa, the leading figure in Poland's successful democracy struggle against communism, has irreparably harmed his legacy.

Walesa said in a television interview on Friday that he believes gays have no right to sit on the front benches in Parliament and, if represented at all, should sit in the back, "and even behind a wall."

"They have to know that they are a minority and must adjust to smaller things. And not rise to the greatest heights, the greatest hours, the greatest provocations, spoiling things for the others and taking (what they want) from the majority," he told the private broadcaster TVN during a discussion of gay rights. "I don't agree to this and I will never agree to it."

"A minority should not impose itself on the majority," Walesa said.

Click here to read more.