Scandal exposes gay-straight divide | ajc.com

Scandal exposes gay-straight divide | ajc.com: "The scandal over ex-Rep. Mark Foley's explicit electronic messages to teenage male former pages has highlighted a dividing line within the Republican Party between straight and gay conservatives.

The Foley scandal has exposed a 'don't ask, don't tell' attitude with which many Republican lawmakers regard gay staffers on Capitol Hill, a more tolerant approach than GOP politicians generally present to supporters at election time.

As a result, some GOP conservatives are seizing the opportunity to try to push gays and lesbians further away from the party, even as prominent gay bloggers are vowing to out more closeted gay Republicans, all of which is causing openly gay Republicans on Capitol Hill to feel under siege."