Tom Fudge: Last week, San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders did two things to make the news. He announced that his daughter was gay, and he supported a city measure endorsing gay marriage. And he announced he would run for a second term as mayor of the city. It may be a coincidence that the two news stories came on each others' heels. But the politics of Sanders' gay marriage announcement are expected to influence his run for mayor. This is a fact even though San Diego has no power to influence state law on same-sex marriage.
Will Sanders' symbolic gay marriage stance hurt him or help him? Hard to say. The Web site www.salon.com published a story about it entitled "The Courage of Jerry Sanders." But his position will no doubt hurt him with some conservatives who may shift their allegiance to Sanders' expected conservative rival Steve Francis. Francis has announced an exploratory committee. It's still hard to say what democrats may step into the mayor's race. Sanders is a republican, just in case you were wondering.
Guests
- Carl Luna, professor of political science at San Diego Mesa College.
- Glen Sparrow , professor emeritus in the School of Public Affairs at San Diego State.
