Senior members of the Alabama Republican Party are trying to kick a 23-year-old college Republican off their steering committee after she told a local news site that same-sex marriage was reasonable because “we’re governed by the constitution and not the Bible.”

The divide within the Republican Party on social issues is almost entirely one in which the young, Randian libertarian types are lined up against the older religion-peddling establishment farts. Even ignoring the party's problems courting Latinos, black Americans, women and every other group not made up of angry white male conspiracy theorists, the Party is facing a not-yet-quite-open rebellion from inside their own tent She's a witch! Burn her!

College Republicans Federation head Stephanie Petelos made the rather terrible decision to truthfully answer a reporter's question about the young folks these days and gay marriage, and that is something every decent Republican knows you must never, ever do because then Tinkerbell dies and a passing stray dog makes a quick meal of her and it is all your fault. Petelos specifically opined that student Republicans are skeptical of the party stance because "the majority of students don’t derive the premise of their argument for or against gay marriage from religion, because we’re governed by the constitution and not the Bible." Yeah, oops.

Luckily, Alabama Republican leaders know just what to do in these situations: get rid of the opinion-haver. Unless, that is, she agrees to not have opinions on such things.



Petelos told BuzzFeed that some members of the state party’s leadership were furious when her comments were published, and they began discussing ways to oust her from the party’s steering committee, which always guarantees a spot for the college Republican chair. She eventually struck a deal with the leadership. “If I didn’t talk to any more press, or post on Facebook, or use any of my influence to talk about gay marriage, then they would not try to continue removing me from the steering committee,” Petelos said.

…. but the group is still considering a change to the party bylaws in response to the youngfolk-having-opinions-these-days that would boot any steering committee member who "publicly advocates" any opinion that is contrary to the national party platform stance, and watching that get enforced would be a hoot and a half—no, a hoot and three-quarters. Five eighths?

Hopefully lost on all involved is how very irritated passionate young Alabama Republicans must be to know that their caucus leader was nearly stripped of her position for the crime of mentioning how young Republicans felt about something. Perhaps this will provide a valuable life lesson. Or, you know, perhaps not.

