The homemade interecail sex videoRepublican National Committee released a statement Sunday about the Orlando shooting that contained one sentence unequivocally condemning the attack for singling out lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people.
"Violence against any group of people simply for their lifestyle or orientation has no place in America or anywhere else," it said.
SEE ALSO: Orlando attack is a 'wake-up call' to stop dehumanizing LGBT people, advocates sayThe RNC's reference to gender identity and sexual orientation was vague and awkwardly worded. Still, the sentence stood out in a statement that otherwise declined to clearly identify Pulse nightclub as a gay destination or describe the victims as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer.
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But by Monday, the statement had been updated. It was missing that key sentence and contained no explanation for the revision.
"Violence against any group of people simply for their lifestyle or orientation has no place in America or anywhere else."
Lindsay Walters, a spokesperson for the RNC, confirmed to Mashable that the sentence had appeared in an earlier version of the statement erroneously posted to the committee's website.
In the final version, posted Monday, the text preceding the deleted sentence was edited to read: "A terrorist attack against any American is an assault against us all, and Saturday’s violence will only harden the commitment of our people to maintain a free, peaceful, and democratic society in which all beliefs are tolerated."
Walters said the revision was meant to be more inclusive because it invoked a common humanity and referenced all Americans instead of singling out LGBT people.
But Gregory T. Angelo, president of Log Cabin Republicans, an organization that represents LGBT conservatives and allies, found the omission alarming.
"Scrubbing an early draft of their press release for any specific mention of gay people or sexual orientation is indicative of the cowardice a lot of Republicans exhibited in the aftermath of the shootings," Angelo told Mashable.
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Indeed, the conservative response to the attack has led to a raging debate over the Republican party's position on LGBT issues. On Tuesday, James Richardson, a former spokesman and advisor for the RNC, published a scathing op-ed in Time, criticizing Republican politicians for their silence on the victims' sexuality.
"With sparse exception, many Republicans pointedly refused to utter the word 'gay' in the hours that followed the massacre," Richardson wrote. "It was almost as though they feared their own sexual orientation would shift with the utterance — gay!" (Mother Jonescollected examples from 25 Republicans whose statements or tweets did not recognize the victims' sexual orientation or gender identity.)
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The RNC's decision to remove the sentence from its statement highlights the party's challenges as it tries to embrace the victims and show solidarity with the LGBT community without alienating Republican voters who often describe so-called identity politics as divisive.
Conservatives have also long led the opposition to equal rights and protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, which puts the party in the difficult position of staying silent about the nature of the attack, or demonstrating empathy and inviting criticism for its policies.
That dynamic was evident Tuesday when CNN anchor Anderson Cooper interviewed Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi and repeatedly asked about her record on LGBT issues, including her defense of the state's constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.
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"I will say I have never really seen you talk about gays and lesbians and transgender people in a positive way until now," Anderson said.
Bondi countered that she was fulfilling her obligation as attorney general when defending the state's constitutional amendment, and that she was dedicated to helping those affected by the shooting. "We're about human beings, and this is about victims who need help," Bondi said. "This is about family members who need services, that's what this is about."
Angelo credits Republican "standard bearers" like presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump, former presidential nominee Mitt Romney, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, Sen. Ted Cruz and Sen. Marco Rubio for explicitly referencing the LGBT victims in public statements about the attack.
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"Our nation stands together in solidarity with the members of Orlando’s LGBT community," said Trump in a speech following the attack. While Trump opposes marriage equality, and his positions on other LGBT issues are unclear, Angelo noted that his remarks gave the LGBT community visibility unprecedented for a presumptive GOP nominee.
Rubio, who issued a statement and tweeted about the shooting without that information, did tell The Advocate, “I don’t need investigators to tell me the gay community was targeted in this attack.”
In a lengthy Facebook post, Cruz, who opposes same-sex marriage and transgender-inclusive bathrooms, said, "Every human being has a right to live according to his or her faith and conscience, and nobody has a right to murder someone who doesn’t share their faith or sexual orientation."
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Angelo said that Republicans standing up for LGBT victims should receive recognition for their efforts — but also explain and defend their policy positions.
"It’s my hope if there’s any forward movement, that we can start a very frank and open conversation with Republicans about LGBT issues nationally," he said.
That dialogue, however, may be difficult to establish in the wake of the attack. The RNC's revised statement also angered progressive advocates.
"[K]now that history will record who stood up for the LGBT community explicitly and those who did not."
"The RNC's erasure of LGBTQ people of color, who were targeted simply because of who they are, demonstrates a profound lack of judgment and empathy that has no place in politics," said Jay Brown, communications director for the Human Rights Campaign, one of the nation's most influential LGBTQ advocacy organizations.
Shannon Minter, legal director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights, decried the omission.
"Even in the face of such a horrific attack on our community," he said, "the RNC cannot bring itself to embrace LGBT people or to acknowledge that anti-LGBT hate violence is a serious, nationwide problem."
Angelo is hopeful that conservatives who have not yet addressed the targets of the attack or shown solidarity with the LGBT community will look to Republicans like Trump, Romney and Gingrich for guidance.
"When you have leaders in the GOP ... expressing public sympathy, it shows that Republicans should be able to show a little heart, weather any criticism they might take," he said, "but know that history will record who stood up for the LGBT community explicitly and those who did not."
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