How Times Have Changed

In 2008, the Family Research Council endorsed Joseph Cao for Congress:

Today FRC Action PAC is endorsing Joseph Cao for Congress representing the second district of Louisiana.

“Joseph Cao will be a true friend of the family. We need representatives who will fight to defend the family against the radical leadership in the House of Representatives,” said Tony Perkins, President of FRC Action PAC. “I feel confident in Joseph Cao’s ability to do just that.

“Joseph Cao’s amazing life story is a testament to the high-caliber Congressman he would be. The second district of Louisiana deserves the type of leadership and integrity that he brings.

“We will need many pro-family representatives in the next Congress and FRC Action PAC believes that Joseph Cao will be a true advocate for the issues that best uphold and strengthen families. We are proud to support his candidacy.”

Cao won his race and is now running for re-election … and FRC is running ads against him because he turned out to be insufficiently anti-gay:

The conservative Family Research Council Action PAC has launched a last-minute radio ad campaign against Rep. Anh “Joseph” Cao, R-New Orleans, for his support of gay rights … Cao’s “record is dismal on our issues,” Tony Perkins, the former Louisiana legislator who heads the Washington-based FRC, said Saturday.

“Who is Rep. Joseph Cao representing in Washington?” the FRC ad asks. “Cao has repeatedly voted for extra protections for homosexuals at the cost of religious liberty. Cao voted to use the military to advance the radical social agendas of homosexual activists and he voted for a so-called hate crimes bill that places your personal liberties at jeopardy.”

Cao co-sponsored both the Hate Crimes Protection Act of 2009 and House legislation to repeal the policy that prohibits openly gay men and women from serving in the armed forces, known as “don’t ask, don’t tell.”

“I believe it is a human rights violation to impose government-sanctioned penalties on a group of people just because of their sexual orientation, just as it would be a human rights violation to impose penalties on a group because of its religious affiliation or race,” Cao said. “I will continue to fight for the protection of human rights for all people.”