Quigley, Hearty Boys Extend Dinner Invite to Huckabee

By Joseph Erbentraut in News on Jun 4, 2010 6:00PM

Former Arkansas governor and former 2008/rumored 2012 presidential wannabe Mike Huckabee may have missed his first shot at dinner with the Hearty Boys - Steve McDonagh and Dan Smith - in April, but perhaps the addition of another notable guest, Congressman Mike Quigley, might be a game changer for the Fox News commentator?

Then again, probably not. Huckabee ignored a previous dinner invitation sent by the restaurateurs and Food Network hosts following a series of inflammatory, anti-gay remarks he made to a New Jersey campus newspaper in April. Likening a legalization of gay marriage to a legalization of incest, drug use and polygamy, Huckabee further stated gay couples should not be allowed to adopt because "children are not puppies."

Those comments have again spurred McDonagh and Smith to draft an open letter to Huckabee, inviting him over to meet them, their 4-year-old son Nate and many other gay and lesbian-headed families at the Families Valued Dinner, to be held next Monday at their Hearty Restaurant (3819 N. Broadway).

"You need to understand and see firsthand what a family like ours is like," McDonagh wrote. "We are no less a family than yours, and in fact, we are healthier and more stable than most. Americans are no longer going to sit silent as our families are attacked. And even though I find your comments reprehensible and irresponsible, I will open my home to you and pray that we might help you better understand the damage you could inflict."

Quigley also issued a message to Huckabee in anticipation of the event:

"These families represent the very best in American life - accomplished professionals and successful entrepreneurs and most importantly, devoted parents," Quigley wrote. "They’re involved in their communities and schools and add immensely to the rich life of our great Chicago metropolitan area. And these wonderful, loving families are also guided by nurturing parents of the same gender ... I’m looking forward to spending time with them and hearing the family stories that you and I will immediately recognize as parents ourselves - of fussy eaters, after school sports and recitals, grandparents, and scraped knees."

Huckabee has yet to respond to the Hearty Boys' latest dinner invite. He has, in previous statements, suggested gay marriage could threaten modern civilization's survival and supported AIDS patients being isolated from the general population.