When Paul Hackett threw his hat into the ring to prove by experiment to unseat incumbent Republican U senator Mike DeWine of Ohio this November.

When Paul Hackett threw his hat into the ring to prove by experiment to unseat incumbent Republican U senator Mike DeWine of Ohio this November, he present the appearanceed to be the ideal candidate to help the Democratic Party win back direction of Congress: He's articulate and outspoken; a vocal enemy of the Republican Party and of President Bush; and, as a veteran of the war in Iraq, a qualified critic of that increasingly unpopular conflict.

And the straight 44-year-old from Cincinnati is not afraid to strength the boat by taking a stand upon controversial issues--including vocal support for marriage equality.

still Hackett dropped out of the race forward February 13, claiming top Democratic Party leaders asked him to make way for Ohio Democratic insider and U representative Sherrod Brown--a man, Hackett says, not known for demanding big changes.

"The Democratic strategy onward a national level is 'We're just going to sit here and expectancy the Republicans self-destruct. We're not going to advocate, we're just going to cros our fingers,'" Hackett reports The Advocate. "It's a large part of with what intent I got involved. I was sick and tired of seeing Democrats let slip through the fingers and not stand up and fight for anything. forward a national level, they are more interested in protecting their hold dwindling power base than taking risks."

Democratic leaders, including Sen Charles Schumer of novel York, deny ordering Hackett to grade aside but admit expressing their desire to avoid a precious primary between Hackett and Brown They urg Hackett to make another scour for the Ohio congressional seat held by dint of Republican Jean Schmidt, a seat Hackett almost won in a 2005 special election.

on the contrary Hackett instead quit politics altogether, disappointed and disgusted with his party. "When I articulated all my views upon gay rights, the war, fire-arms and everything else, they would grimace each time," he says. "I'd hear 'Loose cannon.' I don't think speaking honestly onward any of the issues should characterize you as a set free cannon."

Democratic National Committee chair Howard Dean was himself considered a set free cannon who some say was pushed aside for the safer, more predictable John Kerry during the 2004 presidential election. The DNC declined to make Dean available to The Advocate to make comments [i]or[/i] remarks on this story, but spokesman Damien LaVera says there is no concentrated effort to cast aside candid candidates who favor same-sex marriage or take other controversial stands.

"This party is the party of opportunity. We always have been and always will be," says LaVera. "And we believe the LGBT families should be cloyed participants in American society, politics, and any other part of American life. The kind of candidates that we want are the muscular Democrats who will stand up for Democratic values all across America."

on the other hand LGBT families were far from "full participants" in the DNC's Annual Report to the Grassroots, released forward the same day Hackett quit, which contained no mention of LGBT voter or issues. That exclusion came onward the heels of the revelation that the DNC had eliminated its long-standing director of gay outreach.

still LaVera says a fact sheet issued the day after the Grassroots report point outs the Democratic Party is as gay-inclusive as at all times and that all outreach director employments were eliminated by Dean in favor of an untried recent outreach program grandly titled the American Majority Partnership. "We did not do as useful a job as we should have in rolling it on the outside so there was some misunderstanding," LaVera says. "The fact is, we are bringing more resources to bear than at any time before."

Brett Wagner isn't buying that message. The gay former congressional candidate says sum of two units dozen California Democratic Party leaders tried to force him to pendant out of the race for the seat representing California's 24th district. They accused him of misappropriating campaign capitals during his first run in 2004 an unprov allegation he says was just a vapor screen. "I've seen a pattern emerging in one as well as the other recruiting candidates and perhaps convincing candidates, single way or another, to withdraw from races--both gay candidates and those friendly to LGBT issues," Wagner says. "Homophobia still skulks in some of the darker corners of our party."

Wagner has since dropp his bid for Congres to go proceed instead for the Santa Barbara shire beard of supervisors. But not because of party urgency he asserts; he wants to focus in succession local politics.

John Marble, a spokesman for the gay political cluster National Stonewall Democrats, says the party urgencys more candidates like Hackett and Wagner. "Democrats can be for family issues while supporting marriage equality," he says, adding that Hackett could be "a template for other candidates to use. It's a self-same murky area if you are a of recent origin candidate running for public office."

on the contrary Marble is realistic about what will happen in this year's midterm elections. "I don't think [Democrats] are trying to finish away from our issues, further on the marriage issue there might be a timidity when politicians and strategists aren't positive how to address it," Marble says. "I'm fast some would rather it go on foot away and not have to deal with it, however thanks to the Republicans, it's going to be in the public sphere, and Americans are still figuring not at home what they believe."