Sarah Palin's 'Homos' Tweet

Sarah Palin has never been the most gay-friendly politician, toeing a social conservative line on everything from marriage equality to "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT), which she once likened to a distraction.

"I say that because there are other things to be worried about right now with the military," Palin said last year, after President Obama addressed repeal in his State of the Union address. "I think that kind of on the back burner, is sufficient for now. To put so much time, and effort, and politics into it, unnecessary."

But now Palin seems to be changing her tune, by retweeting conservative lesbian blogger Tammy Bruce's assertion about Owen Honors, the naval captain suspended for directing anti-gay videos with and for his soldiers: "This hypocrisy is just truly too much. Enuf already -- the more someone complains about the homos the more we should look under their bed." The message was clear: homophobia's dangerous and DADT deserved repeal.

Some wonder whether Palin's reinforcement of Bruce's missive shows that the politico has suddenly realized the error of her right-wing ways.

That seems implausible; rather, it's more likely Palin's simply channeling the political sirens to lure gay people to her disingenuous island.

Gawker's Max Read was right on the money when he wrote, "Palin is not, in the context of her party, rabidly homophobic." And, yes, the former Alaska Governor is not foaming at the mouth like, say, her Tea Party peer Jim DeMint, the Senator who calls homosexuality "destructive to society."

Palin's comparative docility, however, should not be confused with allegiance: she regularly backs heterocentric candidates, such as Christine O'Donnell, who believes we gays suffer an "identity disorder." Palin also attended a church that believed in "converting" gay people, thus saving their souls.

Palin's apparent gay love, then, becomes immediately suspect.

With the Republican party debating the role of LGBT conservatives in their midst, it's most likely Palin simply wants to capitalize on the evolving culture, extending a tepid olive branch by embracing a hackneyed observation and insiders' language. She's hoping that gay Republicans -- and perhaps some liberals -- will be charmed by her nonchalant support and therefore forget her past transgressions. LGBT voters are warned against being so naive.

If Palin truly wants to win over the LGBT set, she needs to take action -- and, contrary to popular opinion, a re-tweet is not "action" -- by actively opposing her party's entrenched homophobia and discrimination. Anything less than taking a decisive stand should be viewed as nothing more than a vain, potentially dangerous attempt to shore up electoral loyalty without delivering the gay goods.

Photo credit: sskennel's Flickr