I'm a Christian, a patriotic American, and a free market shrink the government conservative,

who also happens to be gay.

What I mean by that is, my values define me.

While my sexual orientation sometimes feels more like, well, a footnote.

Literally, in fact, I came out as gay in a footnote in my book, End of Discussion.

When it comes to my political beliefs, my orientation is only one part of the story.

It's not the totality of who I am.

Some unimaginative leftists like to claim that this qualifies me as a self-hating gay person.

This is so boring.

That intellectual laziness only underscores my point.

Far too often, people are sorted by their gender or their skin color or their sexual orientation

or any other immutable characteristic that has nothing to do with ideas or values.

To be candid in my day-to-day life and work, I spend a lot more time thinking and writing

about the failures of Obamacare, for example, than I do about LGBT issues, whatever that term

might mean on any given day.

Just like any conservative, I want taxes low, the military strong, and don't even get

me started on single-payer healthcare or late-term abortion.

I'm a conservative because when I think about these issues critically, I usually end up

on the right end of the spectrum.

It's that simple.

Here's the thing.

I fully recognize how fortunate I am to live in a time and a country where I can be openly

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