2007: The Good,
The Bad, and the Gay

1. Among the many scandals Republicans faced in 2007, U.S. senator Larry Craig of Idaho was the center of the storm. He was arrested in June for lewd conduct after an undercover police officer claimed that Craig tried to tap-dance his way to sex in a Minneapolis airport bathroom. He later pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of disorderly conduct and as of now appears set to stay in office through his term, which expires in 2008.

2. At a September visit to Columbia University in New York, Iranian president Mahmoud Amadinejad wowed the crowd with this whopper: "In Iran we don't have homosexuals like in your country." Saturday Night Live stars Andy Samberg and Fred Armisen parody accordingly.

3. Logo and the Human Rights Campaign hosted the first presidential forum concerning LGBT issues in August. New Mexico governor Bill Richardson tripped up during his turn in the hot seat when he said that being gay is a choice. He promptly visited The Advocate's office the next day to apologize for his blunder, which he attributed to fatigue.

4. After much revision and debate, in November the House passed Rep. Barney Frank's version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which does not include protections for transgender workers. Not only will the bill come up against a tougher vote in the Senate, President Bush has vowed to veto it if it lands on his desk.

5. Gay marine Eric Alva, the first American service member wounded in Iraq, urged Congress in February to lift the ban on gays in the military.

6. In the same month, former NBA center John Amaechi released the book Man in the Middle, in which he announced he is gay.

7. In June, Cyndi Lauper launched a 16-city tour benefiting HRC featuring other acts, including Erasure, Debbie Harry, the Dresden Dolls, and Margaret Cho.

8. In January, following a Golden Globe win for Grey's Anatomy, star Isaiah Washington brought up the f word, claiming to reporters that he'd never used the word back in October 2006 to describe costar T.R. Knight during a spat with fellow actor Patrick Dempsey. Washington was given his walking papers. Knight came out and became a new gay hero.

9. Lesbian-bashing Penn State basketball coach Rene Portland resigned in March, two months after the university settled a suit with former player Jennifer Harris, who accused Portland of "humiliating, berating, and ostracizing" her because Portland perceived Harris to be gay.

10. Finance guru and media favorite Suze Orman came out in an interview with The New York Times Magazine, explaining how she and her partner would lose half of their shared earnings at death because they cannot legally marry.