A Republican state lawmaker who was forced to reveal he is gay after a recent arrest for drunken driving spoke out passionately in favor of gay rights during a legislative session Thursday, urging his fellow senators to “rise above discrimination” and support letting gays serve openly in the military. Sen. Roy Ashburn also weighed in on a bill designed to protect clergy who refuse to perform gay marriages. “I am no longer willing or able to remain silent on issues that affect sexual orientation, the rights of individuals, and so I, um, I’m doing something that is quite different and foreign to me. And it’s highly emotional,” Ashburn told fellow senators.

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