In a horrifying show of “solidarity,” Senator Ted Cruz, Gov. Mike Huckabee, and Gov. Bobby Jindal spoke at a conference in Des Moines, Iowa, which was led by Pastor Kevin Swanson. Pastor Swanson is infamous for his continuous call to exterminate LGBTQIA+ individuals. He is a strong backer of Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” bill, as he believes it serves as a model for the way queer individuals should be “dealt” with.
At the National Religious Liberties Conference, the event that the aforementioned men attended with Swanson, at which Cruz’s father Rafael Cruz was a lead speaker, the Pastor once again pushed his anti-gay agenda, with the caveat that queer folk should have the opportunity for repentance before their extermination. What a stand up guy.
The National Religious Liberties Conference, as the event was titled, seems an almost ironic name, as the point of the conference was apparently to infringe upon the liberties of other citizens of this country, as well as citizens of the world. And the fact that this event and the presence of Presidential hopefuls have not sparked more conversation is extremely disturbing. We, as a country, speak freely and often about the “barbarianism” of countries that experience acts of terrorism and genocide. While this is an issue in and of itself, it is also points out the raging hypocrisy that men like this, men running to lead our country, would be introduced by a man calling for the extermination of those who live here. Calling for acts of internal terrorism.
So why hasn’t this gotten more attention? The optimist in me hopes that, with the inclusion of the Trumps of the world in the GOP, the world simply isn’t surprised by these disgusting absurdities and refuses to give the GOP the attention it doesn’t deserve. The cynic in me worries that it’s because those who have viewed this event simply don’t care, or worse, enjoy watching Swanson and Presidential hopefuls commune.
