First Openly Gay Cabinet Secretary?

There has been a lot of talk about making Obama's cabinet diverse, and while so far this has meant token minority men and a few white women, some of the remaining positions could have interesting nominations. If you haven't already heard, there is a growing amount of buzz at putting union activist Mary Beth Maxwell in charge of the Department of Labor - marking the first appointment of an openly gay person to the United States cabinet.

In addition to various gay rights organizations, who recently penned a letter to Obama voicing their support, Maxwell also has the backing of a lot of the labor unions and former Rep. David Bonior. Bonior has himself been considered one of the front-runners for the job and is trying to throw his support to Maxwell, pushing for her behind the scenes with labor groups this week.

There are some other serious contenders for the position, most notably Kathleen Sebelius, the current governor of Kansas and an early supporter of Obama's candidacy. Obama hasn't shown a trend of picking only supporters and friends for top posts thus far, but rather has shown a willingness to reach out and work with new people. And there's also the fact that Sen. Sam Brownback, a Kansas Republican, is retiring from the senate and running for governor there in 2010; Sebelius is the only Democrat who could win the open-seat race to replace him in the senate, and she can't start a campaign in Kansas a month after entering the Cabinet. Obama may choose someone like Maxwell rather than lampoon a chance at picking up a senate seat.

I am wondering how much a Maxwell appointment would mean to the gay rights movement. On a practical level, I'm sure that she would push for workplace protection for LGBT persons and contribute to ending labor discrimination against gays; however, any progressive Democrat, regardless of orientation, would have that on their radar.

But it would be a pretty big moral victory after an election in which many gays felt like we got burnt. Furthermore, it would definitely be a big thing to see a gay woman in such a high office, and to see the confidence of the President-elect in having her nomination pass regardless of her orientation. Not too long ago, a gay woman wouldn't even have been seriously considered, and if one were nominated it would have been a bloodbath in the media and potentially in Congress. Say what you will about Congress - that they are ineffective windbags, for example - but I sense (and hope) that even most Republicans would treat Maxwell's nomination with total respect.

My only worry is that a lot of gay men might not get terribly excited, or even care, about her nomination. I know that many of the gay guys I've met don't see the struggle of gay men and gay women, not to mention all other queer folk, as the same; if your understanding of the gay community is gendered, exclusive, and sexist, then I guess this wouldn't be anything to get excited about. But for such people, it's just about time to wake the fuck up. This could be a great community-building exercise, no?

There's not really much we can do at this point, unless you know Barack Obama personally... in which case (a) you are a bit out of my political league to be reading this, and (b) please ask Barry to pick Ms. Maxwell. For the rest of us, we just get to wait and keep our fingers crossed.