Donald Trump endorses extreme homophobe Roy Moore’s Senate bid despite child molestation claims
Donald Trump has endorsed extreme homophobe Roy Moore’s bid for the Senate, despite allegations of sexual assault and child molestation.
Trump today expressed his backing for disgraced former judge Roy Moore, who is the Republican candidate in a special election for a US Senate in Alabama, facing off against Democrat Doug Jones.
If elected, Moore would be the most homophobic Senator in modern history.
The disgraced ex-judge was ejected from the Alabama Supreme Court for abusing his authority in a bid to block gay weddings. He has previously compared gay sex to bestiality and paedophilia, and has ties to ‘death to gays’ preachers.
Meanwhile, his campaign has been hit by controversy after multiple women came forward to accuse Moore of sexual assault, including a number who were under the age of consent when he made alleged sexual advances.
The concoction of homophobic extremism and allegations of child molestation has led moderate Republicans to come out swinging against Moore’s candidacy.
However, Donald Trump – who has repeatedly praised Moore and disparaged his opponent – gave him his formal backing today.
The White House confirmed Trump had spoken to Republican Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore by phone and endorsed his campaign.
Moore’s wife Kayla Moore added: “Judge Moore just got off the phone President Trump – we have his full support! Thank you Mr President! Let’s MAGA!”
Moore and Jones are virtually tied in polling in the state, and Trump’s endorsement could tip the balance.
The Log Cabin Republicans group, which advocate for LGBT rights within the GOP, came out against Moore’s candidacy last week.
The released a campaign ad that parodies some of the rhetoric used about LGBT people, urging voters to reject Moore at the ballot box.
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In the ad, the narrator says: “There is a war on Christianity happening right in our midst. Morals are decaying.
“The very fabric of America is being torn apart. Politicians are attacking our values, our churches, our children.
“It’s a time for choosing. We can’t stand on the sidelines any more. It’s time for good Christians to do what good Christians do – reject Roy Moore.”
Log Cabin Republicans President Gregory T. Angelo said: “Roy Moore has spent his entire career using his bigoted brand of Christianity as a weapon to relentlessly attack members of the LGBT community, all the while allegedly preying upon the most vulnerable in our society.
“Moore’s myopic faith prevents him from seeing that a significant number of LGBT individuals are devout Christians themselves, including many members of Log Cabin Republicans.
“Regardless of one’s sexual orientation or gender identity, it’s time for good Christians to do what good Christians do: REJECT Roy Moore.”
However, the group clarified to PinkNews that it was not supporting Moore’s opponent.
Mr Angelo said: “To be clear: Log Cabin Republicans does not – and will not – support Doug Jones.
“It was important to let the world know where we stood on Roy Moore, and to encourage Christians across the country – especially those in Alabama – to take a principled stand against a man who uses his faith as a sword rather than a shield.
“As a Christian myself, I find Mr. Moore’s bastardization of the faith and a betrayal of The Greatest Commandment to be abhorrent.”
Last month Donald Trump insisted that voters should stick by Moore despite the allegations of child molestation.
Asked about the allegations against Moore, Trump said: “I can tell you one thing for sure, we don’t need a liberal person in there, a Democrat… Jones, I’ve looked at his record, and it’s terrible. I can tell you for a fact that he’s going to be bad.”
Asked by a reporter about whether electing “a child molester” was better than electing a Democrat, Trump said: “He denies it.
“Look, he denies it. If you look at what is really going on, he totally denies it, he says it didn’t happen, and you have to listen to him also.
“He said 40 years ago this did not happen.”
Trump also repeatedly ignored questions about his extreme homophobic record.
In an October press conference a journalist asked: “Roy Moore, down in Alabama, has said that he believes homosexuality should be illegal and that Muslims should be barred from serving in the U.S. Congress.
“What makes you comfortable with someone with those beliefs serving in the U.S. Senate?”
But President Trump brushed off the call to condemn the comments.
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He said: “Well, I’m going to be meeting with Roy sometime next week, and we’re going to talk to him about a lot of different things.
“But I’ll be meeting with him. He ran a very strong race.
“The people of Alabama, who I like very much and they like me very much, but they like Roy.
“And we’ll be talking to him, and I can report to you then. Okay?”
In a separate press gaggle a reporter also tried to raise the issue, but Trump insisted: “I don’t see it.”
Trump’s press chief Sarah Huckabee Sanders also evaded questioning during a White House Press Briefing.
When Moore’s views on LGBT rights were raised, she said: “I’m not going to weigh in on a specific race ahead of time at this point.”
Asked if President Trump has any opinions about Moore’s incendiary comments, she said: “Not that I’m aware of.”
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In a 2015 interview Moore himself refused to say whether he supports gay people being put to death.
The candidate formerly served as Alabama’s Chief Justice, but was ejected from the role after abusing his authority in a bid to block gay weddings in the state.
The disgraced justice had issued a string of orders declaring the US Supreme Court ruling on equal marriage “doesn’t apply” in Alabama due to state anti-gay laws, and ordered probate judges to enforce a gay marriage ban.
Moore fumed: “This was a politically motivated effort by radical homosexual and transgender groups to remove me as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court because of outspoken opposition to their immoral agenda.”
It was in fact because of his flagrantly illegal actions.
Moore said: “Because of YOU, tonight, the establishment has been defeated in Alabama!
“We still have a ways to go before December 12th’s general election, and the road certainly doesn’t get easier, but with YOU, the best grassroots army of supporters around, I know we can take on anything together!”
Moore has also praised Russia’s ‘gay propaganda’ law.
CNN’s K-File found that Moore’s political Facebook page had shared a 2015 article by anti-LGBT website Barbwire titled ‘Conservative Russians Give Moral Lesson to Facebook’s Homosexual Propaganda’.
(Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
The article addressed Russian efforts to ban a Facebook ‘Pride’ profile picture filter in the country under the gay ‘propaganda’ law.
It lavished praise on the country for its “strong stance in defense of traditional family values” by passing “what is commonly referred to as the law against gay propaganda” to jail “insolent demonstrators”.
Elsewhere on his Facebook page, Moore criticised local officials for permitting Pride parades to take place, and shared posts claiming that gay people have fabricated all instances of homophobic hate crimes.
The special election takes place on December 12.
