Andy Martin: U.S. Senate Candidate, Homophobic Jackass

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Dec 28, 2009 6:20PM

The 2010 primaries are five weeks from tomorrow and things are getting nasty in the race for the Republican nominate for U.S. Senate. Candidate Andy Martin has put into a rotation an ad that questions the sexuality of opponent (and U.S. Congessman) Mark Kirk. Martin has scheduled an afternoon press conference in which he'll hit on the theme of "Disclose the facts, Disseminate the truth and Defeat—Mark Kirk." According to WBBM 780:

During the advertisement Martin says that Illinois Republican Jack Roeser has stated there is a “solid rumor that Mark Kirk is a homosexual.” It goes further to say that the Republican leader thinks Kirk is part of a “Republican Party homosexual club.” and that Kirk should come clean about these accusations.

In a written statement, Kirk campaign manager Eric Elk says, "The ad is not true and is demeaning to the political process. The people of Illinois deserve better."

Martin says his ad is not about whether or not the rumors are true, but the fact that they are being discussed on the Internet. Andy Martin says Kirk must address the rumors.

On his own blog, Martin contends, “There has never been another campaign like this. We are going to turn the State of Illinois upside down on February 2nd, win the primary, stun both political establishments, go on to win election to the U. S. Senate and lead a counter-revolution to Barack Obama’s overthrow of our national institutions...the issue is not homosexuality, the question is hypocrisy; people are entitled to their privacy, they are not entitled to live public lives in the closet.”

As if calling such an announcement "D-Day" weren't enough of an asinine move, Martin's claim not only smack of desperation but the underlying homophobia is also grating and indicates how far removed from reality he is. Of course, it should come as no surprise that Martin was allegedly behind the "Obama is a Muslim" movement. Wisely, the Republican Party has issued a statement distancing itself from Martin's allegations [via HuffPo].

The Illinois Republican Party disavows the statements made today by Mr. Andrew Martin in his statewide radio advertisements. His statements today are consistent with his history of bizarre behavior and often times hate-filled speech which has no place in the Illinois Republican Party. Mr. Martin will no longer be recognized as a legitimate Republican Candidate by the Illinois Republican Party.

In addition, it has been brought to our attention that Mr. Martin's sources are now denying any such statements or allegations. According to Raymond True, a leader of the Republican Party in Lake County:

"Mr. Martin did not contact me in any way before making his announcement. The comments attributed to me are completely false. I request through the media that Andy Martin cease and desist from making any additional statements that are incorrectly attributed to me."

For his part, Kirk has been relatively supportive of gay rights according to On The Issues [via Chicago Current].