ABSTRACT
In 1992 a candidate for president of the United States, for the first time in history, used the words gay and lesbian in numerous campaign speeches. “I have a vision, and you-the gay men and lesbians of America-are part of it,” Bill Clinton told more than one crowd of supporters, who responded by waving their rainbow flags with unbridled enthusiasm. Those same men and women also opened their checkbooks to the tune of $5 million and showed up at the polls in huge numbers. The issue that, more than any other, caused gay voters to support the Democratic candidate was his promise to lift the ban that prevented homosexuals from serving in the U.S. military.1
