TPM2012

Gay Servicemembers Tell Rick Perry To Get His Facts Straight Before Running Ads That Slam Them

Evan McMorris-Santoro December 7, 2011, 4:17 PM

Rick Perry’s new ad attacking the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is drawing fire from a group that advocates for gay servicemembers.

In a what appears to be a rather blatant attempt to bolster his standing among social conservatives in Iowa less than a month before the Jan. 3 caucuses, Perry went up with an ad Wednesday that pushed just about as many buttons with the evangelical crowd as is conceivable in 30 seconds.

From the script:

I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a Christian. But you don’t need to be in the pew every Sunday to know that there’s something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military, but our kids can’t openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school.

Here’s the spot, as first reported by TPM’s Eric Kleefeld Wednesday morning:

On the campaign trail, Perry has called the repeal of the military’s ban on gays and lesbians serving openly “irresponsible.” In an interview last month, he declined to say if he’d put the ban back in place if he became president.

The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, a group which defended homosexual servicemembers in court while Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was in place and worked to end the ban late last year, told TPM that Perry should check the facts before he tries to make gay military service a wedge issue in Iowa.

“Gov. Perry is out of step with the majority of Americans who supported repealing DADT,” said Zeke Stokes, SLDN spokesperson. “The Governor needs to consult with the Service chiefs, all of whom reported to congress that repeal is going well without controversy.”