The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), which would outlaw job discrimination against gay people, got a blow when two of its leading Republican co-sponsors distanced themselves from the bill. ENDA has had little chance of becoming law while the Republicans have majorities in both houses of Congress. However, the bill has gotten a significant boost from listing prominent GOPers as lead co-sponsors of the measure.

In the House, the lead Republican sponsor—after U.S. Rep. Chris Shays (R-Conn.)—has been U.S. Rep. Mark Foley (R-Fla.). A five-term congressman, Foley helped the bill, because, although conservative on many issues, he’s fairly moderate on social questions such as gay concerns. He has also been helpful in garnering pro-gay support from other Florida GOPers.

This year, when ENDA is reintroduced, Foley is continuing his support of the bill and will be listed as a co-sponsor. However, he will not sign on as a lead co-sponsor, which means that he and his staff will not have the responsibility of lining up GOP supporters for the bill.

Foley Chief of Staff Kirk Fordham tells me his boss remains committed to ENDA, but that the pressures of running for the U.S. Senate in Florida have crowded out the staff time necessary to allow Foley to serve as a lead co-sponsor.

The political explanation, however, is that it doesn’t help Foley’s Senate campaign among the Sunshine State’s right-of-center Republican primary voters if he has the higher-profile task of ENDA’s lead co-sponsor. Foley’s vulnerability has been heightened by a Florida columnist’s assertion several months ago that Foley is gay, a charge that Foley put down as a Democratic ploy to hurt his campaign.

A similar problem could befall ENDA in the Senate. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) will be running for re-election next year and he’s drawn a conservative opponent—Rep. Pat Toomey (R)—for the primary. While moderate Specter’s Human Rights Campaign legislative score on gay issues was a healthy 86 percent in the last Congress, Toomey’s was a lousy 17 percent. Now Specter may, like Foley, step down as a lead co-sponsor of ENDA. Bill Reynolds, Specter’s media assistant, says Specter will co-sponsor ENDA again, but no decision has been made about serving as a lead co-sponsor. Other sources tell me that Specter’s office led them to believe that the Pennsyl-vania senator will not sign on as a lead co-sponsor this year.

ENDA won’t sink without the added muscle of Foley and Specter, but their stepping back from front-burner support won’t help the gay job rights bill either.

In a larger sense, the actions of the two moderate Republicans illustrate the continued strength of the homophobic right within the GOP, even to the extent of influencing the actions of gay-friendly Republicans. There are two solutions to this problem, both of them long-term projects. One is replacing Republican control of Congress with Democratic control. Gay and gay-supportive voters can help achieve that, but issues such as the economy and events in Iraq are likely to determine the outcome of the 2004 congressional elections.

The other solution is to strengthen the moderate faction within the GOP, so that the Foleys and Specters of this world won’t be so concerned about the antigay right-wingers in their party. President Bush’s recent statement that he believes marriage is for a man and a woman—while couched in tolerant language about welcoming everyone into American society—makes it more difficult for pro-gay moderates to increase their role in the Grand Old Party. Nevertheless, the good work of the Log Cabin Republicans and the Republican Unity Coalition may help improve the party’s record on gay issues.