N.C. newspaper rescinds endorsement following antigay campaign

North Carolina's Wilmington Star-News on Wednesday rescinded its endorsement for state senate over antigay campaign tactics used by Republican Woody White against his openly lesbian opponent, Julia Boseman, a Democrat. The change came after the local Republican Party issued campaign ads that focused on Boseman's sexual orientation and suggested she would pursue "a liberal, activist homosexual agenda." "Mr. White seems to be a decent man," the paper wrote in an editorial. "These are not decent ads. It would be legitimate to criticize the significant contributions Ms. Boseman has solicited and received from out of state. This is, after all, a local race to see who will represent voters in New Hanover County. And because the main source of those out-of-state contributions was a special interest group [the pro-gay Victory Fund], it would be fair to mention that. It's something else to use language such as 'known lesbian activists' and 'radical homosexual rights and privileges' and to conclude by saying 'The truth is...Julia Boseman seeks to be the first openly gay or lesbian State Senator in North Carolina History.' So what? Most sensible voters don't care what a state senator does at home. They care about what he or she does at the legislature." "Ms. Boseman's private life had no apparent effect on her performance as a County Commissioner, and there's no reason to think that would change in Raleigh," the paper continued. "Even if she wanted to press for same-sex marriage or similar causes, it wouldn't matter. In the foreseeable future, few colleagues would join her. Until he allowed these ads to be circulated, Mr. White seemed the more promising candidate. But now a vote for him would be a vote for intolerance and dirty politics."