Jimmy LaSalvia
Encyclopedia
Jimmy LaSalvia is a co-founder and the executive director of GOProud
, a U.S. political action group
representing gay conservatives.
A long-time Republican
activist, LaSalvia has held volunteer and professional staff positions in Republican campaigns and party organizations in South Dakota
and Kentucky
, including serving on the campaign staff of former South Dakota Governor Walter D. Miller. He has also previously worked as a development officer for Kentucky Opera
and as a real estate broker in Louisville, Kentucky
.
In 2006, LaSalvia joined the national staff of Log Cabin Republicans
, first as Grassroots Outreach Director, then as Director of Programs & Policy. He helped to build the organization across the country and lobbied to pass legislation in state capitols and in Washington.
LaSalvia left the Log Cabin Republicans, feeling that they had drifted too far to the left after they refused to endorse President George W. Bush
for reelection in 2004, and only barely voted to endorse Senator John McCain
in his 2008 Presidential campaign. After leaving Log Cabin Republicans, he along with fellow former LCR employee, Christopher R. Barron
started GOProud, intended to be the conservative answer to Log Cabin Republicans leftward drift. The organization has so far proven to be quite successful. They have co-sponsored CPAC two years in a row and conservative commentator Ann Coulter headlined GOProud's first "Homocon" convention.
LaSalvia has appeared on FOX News Channel
, FOX Business Network
, CNN
, MSNBC
, and other television network
s. He has been quoted in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, USA Today
, and other newspaper and media outlets. His public speaking engagements have included speeches at Columbia University
, Princeton University
, Tufts University
, George Washington University
, Smith College
, and other colleges and universities.
LaSalvia was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky
, and grew up in a well-traveled military family. He is a graduate of Black Hills State University
in Spearfish, South Dakota
.
GOProud
GOProud is an American tax exempt 527 organization representing conservative gays, lesbians, transgendered people, and their allies. GOProud advocates for small government conservatism at the level of federal public policy. GOProud was founded by Christopher R...
, a U.S. political action group
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
representing gay conservatives.
A long-time Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
activist, LaSalvia has held volunteer and professional staff positions in Republican campaigns and party organizations in South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
and Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, including serving on the campaign staff of former South Dakota Governor Walter D. Miller. He has also previously worked as a development officer for Kentucky Opera
Kentucky Opera
The Kentucky Opera is the state opera of Kentucky, located in Louisville. The operas are accompanied by the Louisville Orchestra. Founded in 1952 by Moritz von Bomhard, it is the twelfth oldest opera company in the United States and has a more than $2 million budget. The Kentucky Opera is an...
and as a real estate broker in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
.
In 2006, LaSalvia joined the national staff of Log Cabin Republicans
Log Cabin Republicans
The Log Cabin Republicans is an organization that works within the Republican Party to advocate equal rights for all Americans, including gays and lesbians in the United States with state chapters and a national office in Washington, D.C...
, first as Grassroots Outreach Director, then as Director of Programs & Policy. He helped to build the organization across the country and lobbied to pass legislation in state capitols and in Washington.
LaSalvia left the Log Cabin Republicans, feeling that they had drifted too far to the left after they refused to endorse President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
for reelection in 2004, and only barely voted to endorse Senator John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
in his 2008 Presidential campaign. After leaving Log Cabin Republicans, he along with fellow former LCR employee, Christopher R. Barron
Christopher R. Barron
Christopher R. Barron is the cofounder of GOProud, a political organization representing gay conservatives. The president of CapSouth Consulting, a political consulting firm, Barron served as the national political director for Log Cabin Republicans, where he directed the organization’s federal...
started GOProud, intended to be the conservative answer to Log Cabin Republicans leftward drift. The organization has so far proven to be quite successful. They have co-sponsored CPAC two years in a row and conservative commentator Ann Coulter headlined GOProud's first "Homocon" convention.
LaSalvia has appeared on FOX News Channel
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
, FOX Business Network
Fox Business Network
Fox Business Network is an American cable news and satellite news television channel that began broadcasting on October 15, 2007. It is owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation...
, CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
, and other television network
Television network
A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small...
s. He has been quoted in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
, and other newspaper and media outlets. His public speaking engagements have included speeches at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, Tufts University
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
, George Washington University
George Washington University
The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...
, Smith College
Smith College
Smith College is a private, independent women's liberal arts college located in Northampton, Massachusetts. It is the largest member of the Seven Sisters...
, and other colleges and universities.
LaSalvia was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bowling Green is the third-most populous city in the state of Kentucky after Louisville and Lexington, with a population of 58,067 as of the 2010 Census. It is the county seat of Warren County and the principal city of the Bowling Green, Kentucky Metropolitan Statistical Area with an estimated 2009...
, and grew up in a well-traveled military family. He is a graduate of Black Hills State University
Black Hills State University
Black Hills State University, South Dakota's third largest comprehensive public university, offering both undergraduate and graduate programs. The campus is located in Spearfish, South Dakota. Close to 5,000 students attend classes at the Spearfish campus, at sites in Rapid City, Pierre, Yankton,...
in Spearfish, South Dakota
Spearfish, South Dakota
Spearfish is a city in Lawrence County, South Dakota,United States. The population was 10,494 at the 2010 census.- History :Prior to the Black Hills Gold Rush of 1876, the area was used by Native Americans who would spear fish in the creek...
.