AIDS Czar Stirs Reaction with Atlanta Appearance

A recent 20-minute speech by President Bush's gay AIDS czar drew mixed reviews from some AIDS activists. But Republican supporters said Scott Evertz's appearance was not intended to be a lengthy discussion of policy. Evertz spoke on Feb. 21 before the Atlanta Executive Network (AEN), a gay and lesbian business organization.

"Given the importance of the subject matter, I expected to hear him explain how the Bush administration plans to address the AIDS crisis, and I was more than a little disappointed to hear 20 minutes of jokes instead," said Jeff Graham, executive director of AIDS Survival Project. "Even when he was asked point blank what specific policy initiatives he would like to see addressed, he could not come up with a single one. That's a problem."

But Rich Tafel, executive director of the gay Log Cabin Republicans, said Evertz was invited to "just do a get-to-know-you talk." Tafel, who introduced the AIDS czar, said Evertz's speech was limited to 20 minutes to keep it "light."

Evertz received a large round of applause when he promised to reroute some existing federal AIDS funds to minority-controlled organizations. But when pressed by an audience member to name his top five priorities as AIDS czar, Evertz stopped short. He said he was "sure people would like for there to be a top five," but he "couldn't think of any at the moment," and the administration had "recently learned something very important: HIV transmission isn't caused by people not knowing how to use a condom." Evertz said he was "still uncomfortable with the title 'AIDS czar,' especially because it didn't come with the requisite tiara."

"These are people who know an awful lot about the fight against HIV and AIDS, and several people in the room were HIV-positive," said Ken Britt, a past AEN board member. "They were expecting to be inspired. They were expecting a leader. What they got was a stand-up routine." When he attended a private reception with Evertz later, Britt said he found the AIDS czar "dedicated and engaging, one-on-one."

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