David Parks
Nevada state rep.
“AIDS was mentioned but not discussed. Because the president has done well in the programs he’s supported, it was important to focus on other issues. I walked out of there feeling that it was his attempt to gather support from a progressive coalition.”

Cathy Woolard
Atlanta city councilwoman
“We did not have an extended discussion on AIDS. We talked of items currently before Congress.”

Juanita Owens
San Francisco Board of Education president
“Health issues were discussed. I don’t want to discount the possibility that we talked about AIDS. Some--one may have brought it up.”

Liz Malia
Massachusetts state rep.
“We talked about Medicare and other health care problems. The meeting was informal—it wasn’t set up with any specific issues in mind.”

Victoria Sigler
Dade County, Florida, judge
“We went beyond issues specific to the gay community to broader issues, like tax cuts.”

Deborah Glick
New York state rep.
“There was no specific agenda. There may have been some mention of AIDS in terms of health care. When you have 90 minutes to discuss 42 issues, it’s limiting.”

Allan Spear
Minnesota state senator
“I think someone mentioned AIDS at the end, but we ran out of time. We met earlier and decided which issues we needed to bring forth. AIDS wasn’t one. But it wasn’t a conscious decision