WASHINGTON -- A right-wing advocacy group headed by a Republican county supervisor in Northern Virginia has been designated a "hate group" by the Southern Poverty Law Center, a long-established civil rights organization that monitors and litigates against hate groups and extremists in the United States.
The Washington Post reports that the Loudoun County Democratic Committee is calling for Loudoun County Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio to resign.
Delgaudio's group, Public Advocate of the United States, focuses its efforts on opposing gay marriage while promoting school prayer, anti-abortion legislation and the Boy Scouts. The group's website also has a poll asking who of the following President Obama should nominate to the U.S. Supreme Court: Dan Quayle, or former presidents George W. Bush or George H.W. Bush.
Delgaudio has condemned Transportation Security Administration pat-downs as promoting a "homosexual agenda" -- in 2011 the Post detailed Delgaudio's concerns about the the "'radical homosexual' infiltration" of a Tampa Bay area pirate festival, as well.
The blog Blue Virginia has a copy of the letter the Loudoun Democrats put out calling for Delgaudio's resignation in light of Public Advocate's designation as a hate group:
Today we learned that the nationally recognized Southern Poverty Law Center has designated Public Advocate of the United States, a right-wing advocacy group run by Loudoun Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio, as a Hate Group for its staunch anti-gay advocacy and activities. In the wake of this news, the Loudoun County Democratic Committee is calling for Mr. Delgaudio to resign from the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors.
LCDC Chairman Evan Macbeth issued the following statement:
"The Southern Poverty Law Center has validated what we have known for a long time: Public Advocate of the United States is, in fact, a group dedicated to hatred and bigotry. The time has come for Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio to resign immediately as Sterling District Supervisor.
Loudoun County is no place for hatred and bigotry. The people of Loudoun deserve much better from their elected leaders than Eugene Delgaudio. I look forward to Eugene's colleagues and the Loudoun County Republican Committee leadership joining me in also calling for his resignation in light of this development. I am certain they understand the implications of the leader of a hate group continuing to serve as a Loudoun County Supervisor."
The LCDC has created an internet petition calling for Supervisor Delgaudio's resignation, and encourages all Loudouners to stand up to hate and bigotry by signing. The petition can be found on the Change.Org website.
As of 8:55 p.m. Monday, 53 people had signed the petition.
The Post reports that Mark Sell, chairman of the Loudoun County Republican Committee, said in a statement that it is "not surprising" to him that the Loudoun Democrats are petitioning for Delgaudio to resign.
"This will probably be the first of many attacks on sitting Republican elected officials. These types of attacks only take focus away from the issues Loudoun County residents are concerned about, such as education, transportation and taxes."