Whether or not this is the case, Trump has given a new hope for the future of the Republican party and the GOP by potentially turning over a new leaf of general acceptance. With the legalization of gay marriage nationally, the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” and the acceptance of open transgenders into the armed forces, it is impossible for the GOP to continue down an anti-lgbt path if a Republican White House is truly desired.

Although this is a new step of inclusion for many Republican supporters, Donald Trump has never hidden his support for gay civil right laws. While the majority of his fellow Republican leaders rail against any gay anti-discrimination laws, in 2000 he stated emphatically that he supported them as well as supported the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell”. Furthermore, he believed in, “a very strong domestic partnership that guarantees gay people the same legal protections and rights as married people.” In his book, published the same year, The America We Deserve his dream of America was, “unencumbered by… discrimination against people based on sexual orientation.”

With a Donald Trump presidency, the lgbt+ community will not only have a president that cares about their rights as Americans but a commander-in- chief who will also take up the call to destroy ISIS and further weaken the hold and spread of radical Islam. The lgbt+ community finally has a Republican nominee they can choose to represent their rights. Will the whole of the Republican party accept this new point of view too? Only the future can tell.