Fred Karger, the openly gay Republican presidential candidate, held his own party at CPAC last night. Despite being barred from exhibiting or speaking at the conference, he kept his suite door open, set up an open bar and attracted a crowd of young Republicans and reporters.

He’s been on a roll recently, after his home state of California put his name on the ballot on Monday. He’s now on ballots in six states. But, at CPAC, he has been ignored.

“I’ll represent about 30 percent of the population on the ballot and this group won’t even rent me a booth,” said Karger, when I spoke to him at his party, “It’s the second year in a row. Last year, I didn’t take any action, but this year… I said, OK, I’m going to apply in November and get the early bird discount.”

Despite his best efforts, organizers from CPAC ignored him. He said the group told a Buzzfeed reporter they were sold out.

“I knew you couldn’t be sold out if you still had an early bird discount,” said Karger.

So in January he filed a discrimination complaint with the DC Human Rights Commission. On Friday morning, he met with the Human Rights Commission who is moving quickly with his complaint, according to Karger

“It goes next to mediation and CPAC is going to have to show up,” said Karger, who noted the commission has subpoena power.

He said if the commission sides with him then CPAC will have to allow gay people at their convention next year, which has been booked at the DC convention center, or they’re going to have to move to another location that doesn’t have a discrimination policy.

“I’m not settling for anything less than that,” said Karger.

Last year, CPAC angered some of its large sponsors like the Heritage Foundation, Family Research Council, Concerned Women for America, and Liberty University after it allowed GOProud, the gay Republican organization, to have a booth at the conference for the second year in a row. But after a change in leadership from David Keene, who defended GOProud’s presence, to Al Cardenas, they changed their policy. This year, CPAC sent GOProud a letter in July of 2011 informing them they would not be invited to participate in formal events for CPAC 2012.

Karger said taking a strong stance against gay rights is not helping the Republican Party.

“We’re a minority party, we need younger people, we need new blood, we’re going to be going the way of the dinosaurs,” said Karger, who hopes the party will be more inclusive.

He said the number one reason he’s running for president is to open the door for future gay candidates, “so they don’t have to have their fingers slammed in the door for no reason.”

Then he got back to his party, where unlike CPAC, Karger invited everyone. Around 11 p.m. the party was crowded and guests were jovial.

But then a couple of hotel security guards came and shut it down.

“This party is over,” said the large man wearing a fake police badge that said Marriott Security.

Yesterday kicked off David Horowitz's much-anticipated "Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week" college tour which, according to his website, was to stop at 200 university and college campuses -- including such prestigious schools and Yale and Princeton. So what happens when these schools are contacted and asked about their participation in this ridiculous event? Turns out they have no idea what Horowitz is talking about. Turns out even Jerry Falwell Liberty University doesn't want anything to do with it.

Josh Marshall has more:

Bogus Intel Used in Fight with Islamofascism

Hmmm. I've never been an advocate of kicking a buffoon when he's down. But it seems our friend David Horowitz may be padding his list of colleges and universities participating in Islamofascism Awareness Week (aka "the biggest conservative campus protest ever"). According to ThinkProgress, Horowitz has already been caught adding names of schools that aren't participating in his mumbojumbo in any way. Indeed, they even got caught listing Liberty University, the school Jerry Falwell founded. But now Liberty has demanded their name be removed.

Do we have any C&L readers from these schools who can confirm or deny?

From the Vault: In case you need another example of how much of a clown David Horowitz is -- you don't -- check out his stirring defense of Coulter's attack on 9/11 widows from Larry King last year.

I am back from my vacation, reluctantly plugging myself back into the news. The only English-language channel I saw during my travels was CNN Global, which was more or less news-free with repeated airings of "God's Warriors" over and over. People For The American Way also watched the program and found some chilling aspects to the Christian Warriors segment:

In her series "God's Warriors," CNN's Christiane Amanpour visited Liberty University where she learned that, though greatly pleased with the confirmations of Justices Roberts and Alito, they are training the "next generation of pit bulls" to "keep fighting at the Supreme Court until we have a new day. We never ever, ever give up."

UPDATE: You can watch other portions of the entire Christian Warrior program on YouTube here.

This is whacked:

A small group of protesters gathered near the funeral services to criticize the man who mobilized Christian evangelicals and made them a major force in American politics -- often by playing on social prejudices. And Campbell County authorities arrested a Liberty University student for having several homemade bombs in his car.

The student, 19-year-old Mark D. Uhl of Amissville, Va., reportedly told authorities that he was making the bombs to stop protesters from disrupting the funeral service. The devices were made of a combination of gasoline and detergent, a law enforcement official told ABC News' Pierre Thomas. They were "slow burn," according to the official, and would not have been very destructive.

"There were indications that there were others involved in the manufacturing of these devices and we are still investigating these individuals with the assistance of ATF [Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms], Virginia State Police and FBI.

Usually law enforcement just hauls off protesters or clubs them senseless, but now Liberty University has a new system of dealing with it. Blow em all to hell! When the authorities say the bombs were not very destructive---what does that mean? A cherry bomb can take off your hand. Will they just blow off a few limbs? Is bomb making part of the new curriculum at Regent and Liberty Universities? And many of these students have been hired by the hundreds to run our government by the Bushies.

MSNBC:

The Rev. Jerry Falwell - founder of the Moral Majority and the face of the religious right in the 1980s - died Tuesday after being found unconscious in his office, a Liberty University executive said.

Ron Godwin, Liberty's executive vice president, said Falwell, 73, had been found unresponsive around 10:45 a.m. and was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital.

Godwin said he was not sure what caused the collapse, but noted that Falwell had "a history of heart challenges."

I have had deep, deep issues with Falwell's statements and actions in the past. And I truly do believe he had a very negative impact on politics in the US. However, I am also going to ask that people wishing to comment on this thread show some respect (for the site and the site team, if no one else) by not turning it into a hate-fest.

He allowed Bush to kiss him on top of the head during the '04 race after he got smeared as bad as a person could be in South Carolina back in 2000, so this doesn't surprise me.

"Press release from Jerry Falwell's Liberty University, March 28, 2006: American military hero and Arizona Sen. John McCain will deliver the Commencement message at Liberty University on May 13, at 9:30 a.m., in the Liberty University Vines Center. While Sen. McCain and Liberty University Chancellor Jerry Falwell have had their share of political differences through the years, the two men share a common respect for each other and have become good friends in their efforts to preserve what they see as common values. This will mark his first ever appearance at Liberty University....read on"

geogia10 has a few questions Russert could ask McCain the next time he's on MTP.