The audience at Thursday night’s GOP presidential debate in Orlando, Florida commemorated this week’s repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell by booing Stephen Hill, a gay soldier, as he asked Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) about open service in the military. Without condemning the audience reaction, Santorum responded to Hill’s question by proclaiming that “any type of sexual activity has absolutely no place in the military” and promising to reinstate the 1993 policy. He also characterized open service as a “special privilege”:

SANTORUM: The fact that they’re making a point to include it as a provision within the military that we’re going to recognize a group of people and give them a special privilege and removing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, I think tries to inject social policy into the military and the military’s job is to do one thing — and that is to defend our country. We need to give the military, which is all volunteer, the ability to do so…and I believe this undermines that ability.

KELLY: So what would you do with soliders like Steven Hill. Now he’s out…so what would you do as president?

SANTORUM: Look, what we’re doing is playing social experimentation with our military right now and that’s tragic. I would just say that going forward, we would reinstitute that policy if Rick Santorum was president. Period. That policy would be reinstituted and as far as people in, I would not throw them out because that would be unfair to them because of the policy of this administration, but we would move forward in conformity to what was happening in the past, which is — sex is not an issue. It should not be an issue. Leave it alone. Keep it to yourself — whether your’re heterosexual or homosexual.

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Thanks to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for inviting ThinkProgress to report live from its Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Repeal Day Celebration.

As chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) was a leading force for the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. He will continue to play a role in the implementation of repeal as Congress tracks “remnants of discrimination” that take place in the military, but he said he’s optimistic that all the military leaders are on board and will realize this is “a different world, a different generation.” At Tuesday night’s celebration, he lauded DADT repeal as an advance for freedom, openness, and tolerance in America and thinks historians will look back on the repeal process as proof of the United States’ ability to better itself:

LEVIN: This is an amazing country. We’re able — usually — to change and to deal with things that need to change. “Change” has kind of been our middle name here in America. It’s another milestone on a road to a better county and a greater country, but it’s also proof that we can deal with our mistakes and correct them and pull together and be a better country when we do pull together.

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Randy Thomasson defending Proposition 8 by reading aloud from a children's book about having two dads.

Randy Thomasson of Save California regularly decries any advance of LGBT rights as harmful to children, twisting anything related to protecting LGBT students as “sexual indoctrination,” whether it’s talking about Harvey Milk (which will lead to forced cross-dressing), trying to prevent bullying, or making curricula LGBT-inclusive. In fact, he thinks that California’s FAIR Education Act is “completely unnecessary to deal with school bullies” and is just “sexual brainwashing.” But today, Thomasson took a stand on bullying — on behalf of the bully.

Speaking with Christian radio host Janet Mefferd, he decided to discuss the tragic death of Lawrence King, an openly gay student who was shot in the head twice by classmate Brandon McInerney. McInerney’s trial recently ended in a mistrial due to a hung jury over whether he should be found guilty for murder or manslaughter. But Thomasson thinks McInerney was a victim of “reverse harassment” because of how King taunted him, suggesting that King’s openness about his sexuality was what provoked his own death:

THOMASSON: This was a very disturbed boy who was being harassed, who was sitting on the bench, so when he was being harassed by King he went home and he got his dad’s gun and he came back the next day and he killed Larry King. But the whole point is, why in the world would you let two wrongs to be done? Murder is wrong, but allowing reverse harassment to be done and allowing teachers to actually dress up boys as girls, this is causing tension, it’s causing sexual tension, it’s causing emotional tension and this is not anything that goes along with the purpose of academics.

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Given Thomasson opposes any effort to affirm LGBT young people, his words today illuminate his perceptions of bullying. In his universe, the gay kid who got shot twice in the head doesn’t deserve legal protection, but the straight kid who had to share the same space with a gay classmate is the real victim of bullying.

Gov. Brownback leads a prayer at Perry's "The Response."

Today, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback (R) endorsed fellow conservative Gov. Rick Perry (TX) as the Republican nominee for president. The two are old friends, and Brownback was one of only two governors to appear at Perry’s prayer rally this summer. Perry has not directly addressed LGBT issues since he launched his campaign, but he has a history of opposing equality. Brownback’s endorsement shines further light on the kind of company Perry keeps, as Brownback has repeatedly reacted in petty and petulant ways to LGBT issues. Here are six examples of Brownback’s anti-gay record:

- BROWNBACK OPPOSED A JUDICIAL APPOINTMENT OVER LESBIAN COMMITMENT CEREMONY: As a senator, Brownback spent months blocking the nomination of Janet Neff to the U.S. District Court of western Michigan. The sole reason for his opposition? Neff had once presided over a lesbian commitment ceremony.

- BROWNBACK DEFENDED PROPONENTS OF HARMFUL EX-GAY THERAPY: In 2008, the anti-gay Focus on the Family and its founder James Dobson were inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame, and groups like Truth Wins Out protested the “outrageous insult” to gays and lesbians. Brownback defended Dobson, calling for a Senate resolution honoring and congratulating Dobson and his radio program.

- BROWNBACK BANNED USE OF FLAGPOLES IN PRIDE PARADE: This summer, Brownback tried to limit an LGBT equality celebration at the Kansas state Capitol by banning participants from using any kind of flagpoles, including tiny hand-held flags, deeming them as “dangerous weapons.” He previously had no problem with the Knights of Columbus using both flags and swords at a capitol event.

- BROWNBACK SUPPORTED TAX CREDITS FOR “TRADITIONAL” MARRIAGE: Not only does Brownback oppose marriage equality, but he has even expressed support for tax incentives to encourage only straight couples to marry.

- BROWNBACK DEFENDED BELIEF THAT HOMOSEXUALITY IS “IMMORAL”: In 2007, when Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Peter Pace said homosexuality is “immoral” and analogous to adultery, Brownback defended him, saying he was merely expressing “his personal moral views.”

- BROWNBACK HAS TIES TO ANTI-GAY DOMINIONIST, LOU ENGLE: Brownback has tried to downplay his ties to dominionist minister Lou Engle, who organizes anti-gay prayer rallies called “The Call.” But Brownback has shared a stage with Engle and also has real estate ties to him — they were roommates for seven months.

The suicide of 14-year-old Jamey Rodemeyer has moved Lady Gaga to confront President Obama about bringing an end to the anti-gay bullying that led the young “It Gets Better” video-maker to take his own life. But the cyberbullying that Rodemeyer faced is not only prevalent, but the young people perpetuating it do not even realize the harm they are causing. A new Associated Press-MTV poll found that half of young people regularly encounter discriminatory slang in online communications, and most say they aren’t very offended by it. In fact, young people are twice as likely to suggest that biased slurs are used “to be funny” or “to sound cool” than to actually express hateful feelings toward a group of people.

Perhaps more disconcerting is that 54 percent of young people think it’s OK to use discriminatory words within their own circle of friends, because “I know we don’t mean it.” The resulting desensitization is so severe that only 44 percent said they’d be very or extremely offended by someone’s use of the “N-word.” Anti-gay rhetoric is particularly common, with two-thirds of respondents indicating they regularly hear “that’s so gay” used to demean something, and most aren’t offended by it. Even among young people who are gay or know someone who is, only 39 percent are seriously offended by the use of “fag” — the number dips to 23 percent for all others.

But Rodemeyer’s mother, Tracy Rodemeyer, indicates that that is exactly the kind of cyberbullying that Jamey experienced, as he shared in his video and on his blog. As she told Anderson Cooper last night, almost all of the harassment he faced leading up to his death took place online:

RODEMEYER: If you look into his life he did [his "It Gets Better" video] in May, and from May to June, at the end of school there, everything seemed fine. And if we didn’t have all these social networks out there — the Facebook, you know, and the Internet in general — that is where a lot of the bullying occurs. I mean, so he wasn’t in school for the months of July and August. Twenty years ago, that would have probably meant you didn’t have to worry about bullying, but because people can access each other in numbers so readily, it just made it still accessible for people to do their bullying.

Watch it:

Our guest blogger is Crosby Burns, special assistant for the LGBT Research and Communications Project at American Progress.

Gina Powers and her partner Steph Rindy were forced out of their apartment in West Fargo, North Dakota when their landlord found out they were in a committed same-sex relationship.

William Hubert was kicked out of his Southern California apartment when his landlord found out his live-in attendant was a lesbian and that Hubert associated with gay people.

And Joanne B, a transgender woman, was repeatedly harassed by her landlords who tried to “cure” her, demanded that she sleep in her own room and not with her partner, and eventually evicted her from her home.

Unfortunately for gay and transgender Americans, these heartbreaking stories are all too common. Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, released a report recognizing the both gay and transgender Americans experience higher incidences of discrimination in the housing and rental markets than the general population.

For example, 30 percent of same-sex couples were treated negatively when attempting to buy or rent property. Gay individuals also reported verbal harassment from landlords, Realtors, and lenders. And same-sex couples were shown less desirable properties, quoted higher rent prices, received less favorable customer service, or encountered an outright refusal to sell or rent properties

Transgender individuals too experience high rates of housing discrimination. According to the most comprehensive study on transgender discrimination to date, 19 percent of transgender individuals report being denied a home or apartment and 11 percent report being evicted from their residence for being transgender. Considering these alarmingly high statistics, it is no wonder that 19 percent became homeless because of their transgender status, a rate significantly higher than the general population.

Whereas existing federal laws such as the Fair Housing Act prohibit housing discrimination on the basis of race, age, and gender – among other categories – no federal law prevents housing discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. Currently, 21 states and the District of Columbia outlaw housing discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and 15 and the District of Columbia do so on the basis of gender identity. But in a majority of states, gay and transgender people continue to lack adequate legal protections to shield them from discrimination in the housing and rental markets.

Thankfully, today, Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) and Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) introduced the Housing Opportunities Made Equal Act, or HOME Act. If passed, the HOME Act would expand existing federal housing nondiscrimination requirements to include sexual orientation and gender identity, providing gay and transgender Americans and their families with the protections necessary to combat discrimination in the housing and rental markets. HOME prohibits landlords from harassing or evicting gay and transgender tenants or charging them higher rent. It also prevents discrimination in credit markets, ensuring gay and transgender individuals have equitable access to credit.

Until Congress passes this measure, far too many gay and transgender people will continue to live in fear that they will no longer have a roof over their heads because of sexual orientation and gender identity-based housing discrimination.

The Catholic Diocese of El Paso has reassigned Rev. Michael Rodriguez of San Juan Bautista Catholic Church after he made a series of controversial anti-gay remarks and challenged city officials to a debate over their decision to extend health care benefits to the partners of gay and lesbian city employees. Rodriguez has publicly condemned homosexuality since 2010, writing numerous newspaper columns and speaking out at city council meetings, describing the gay “lifestyle” as “gravely harmful to the common good our city.” In one article titled “Every Catholic Must Oppose Certain Things,” Rodriguez accused “any Catholic who supports homosexuality” of “by definition, committing a mortal sin”:

Furthermore, a Catholic would be guilty of a most grievous sin of omission if he/she neglected to actively oppose the homosexual agenda, which thrives on deception and conceals its wicked horns under the guises of “equal rights,” “tolerance,” “who am I to judge?,” etc. [...]

Abortion and homosexual acts are unequivocally intrinsic moral evils. And friends, this objective truth doesn’t depend on the opinion of the majority. Frighteningly, if the majority chooses to deny the objective moral order, then we will all suffer the pestiferous consequences.

Watch a local news report on the story:

The Catholic Diocese condemned Rodriguez’ “intervention in the political process,” saying that it “is not permitted under Section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code.”

Rodriguez is not the only Catholic leader to be disciplined for spouting anti-gay rhetoric. Father Donat Gionet, a Catholic priest in Canada was recently relieved of his duties after the diocese ruled that his strong anti-gay comments were “dividing a community.” Gionet claims the Church should be fighting homosexuality to “destroy it, or do our best to invite people to change their life.” “I have to teach the truth to the people. I have to tell them how they should live to be with the church because if you’re gay you’re not with the church,” he says.