Dist. 119 opponent disputes depiction
BY RON MENCHACA
Of The Post and Courier Staff
A debate that flared up two years ago over the relevance of a political candidate's sexual orientation is heating up again after Republican state Rep. John Graham Altman III said in a recent fundraising letter that his openly gay opponent is aligned with a "militant homosexual lobby" that's contributing to the "decay of traditional values in America."
The statements were part of a letter Altman e-mailed to his Republican supporters on Thursday.
Charlie Smith, Altman's Democratic opponent for the West Ashley House District 119 seat, obtained a copy of the e-mail and forwarded it to his supporters. Smith's letter calls Altman a "bigot" and a "national embarrassment."
Smith said he is a board member for a gay rights group called Alliance for Full Acceptance, but he said the nonprofit organization is not militant or involved in lobbying.
Both candidates solicited campaign donations in their respective mailings and both claimed their coffers were boosted as a result.
Smith's sexual orientation was a major theme of Altman's campaign in the 2002 election in which Altman defeated Smith.
Smith said he was not personally offended by Altman's comments because he is accustomed to such rhetoric.
He said he's frustrated, however, that his sexual orientation may once again crowd out what he feels are more important issues facing the district, such as education reform and rising health care costs.
"I've been gay all my life. I've heard that stuff all my life. It really rolls right off me," Smith said. "We have real issues to deal with and this is not one of them."
Altman said he plans to address other campaign issues, too, in the coming weeks, but he believes it's fair to highlight his opponent's affiliation with the gay rights group.
In his e-mail, Altman suggests Smith and the AFFA support same-sex marriages and the hiring of homosexual Boy Scout troop leaders.
Smith said he has never made any public comments on either issue.
The AFFA has been active in educating people about gay marriage, but has never made any statements regarding the Boy Scout issue, said the director of the group, Warren Redman-Gress.
Altman pushed unsuccessfully this year for state legislation that would have defined mar-riage in South Carolina as a union between a man and wo-man.
Smith said he has opinions on the issues raised in Altman's letter, but he doesn't plan to address them because he feels they are irrelevant in a district where the majority of voters are not gay.
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