Vile Republican senator thinks happily married gay people are in direct ‘rebellion’ against God
Republican senator Richard Cash spoke before the South Carolina senate during a debate on an abortion bill. (Vimeo/AFFA)
South Carolina senator Richard Cash has come under fire for an anti-LGBT+ rant he undertook while an anti-abortion law was under consideration.
The republican senator claimed the civil rights era and marriage equality caused the “slow, downward moral deadline” in America. He made his remarks while a proposal which bans abortion as soon as a foetus’ heartbeat can be detected was being debated before the senate.
“We are in a slow, downward moral decline in this country that was accelerated in the 1960s and continued to this day,” Cash said. “I am going to get theological. I believe, as a nation, we are in rebellion against God and God’s moral law. Just flat out rebellion.”
Cash argued Americans have “become numb” because “so many things have happened in our lifetime”.
LGBT+ organisations in South Carolina have banded together to condemn Cash’s “tirade” before the senate. Several LGBT+ and allied organisations in South Carolina – including the Alliance for Full Acceptance, the Harriet Hancock Center, Gender Benders, and the Campaign for Southern Equality – issued a statement pushing back on the speech.
Chase Glenn, executive director of the Alliance for Full Acceptance, said the organisations will not allow Cash’s “inflammatory tirade against LGBTQ South Carolinians go unchecked”. He said: “Let me be clear, his words are not just empty vitriol.
“He has a long history of pushing legislation that would directly threaten the lives and dignity of LGBTQ people in our state. His language and actions only divide our state further, when we should be working harder than ever during this time of national crisis to come together, tackle our shared problems, and build communities where every South Carolinian can thrive.”
Marriage equality
The first “thing” he brought up was marriage equality. Cash said: “It wasn’t too long ago that this body – I wasn’t here – but they passed something about marriage, defining marriage between a man and a woman.”
He continued: “The Supreme Court came along and said, ‘No, no, no, no anybody can get married. Two men, two women. We’re going to throw out everything we know about marriage and human history. We’re going to throw out all the state laws that might regulate or govern this ancient institution.'”
He referred to the landmark Obergefell v Hodges ruling by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court ruled that the fundamental right is guaranteed to a same-sex couple. The ruling requires all 50 states and the district of Columbia to perform and recognise same-sex marriages on the same terms and conditions as heterosexual couples.
Trans issues
Cash claimed the “next thing in this downward spiral” is the rise of trans issues in the United States. He said: “Now, we’re talking about transgenderism, and it’s frankly so crazy.”
“It’s hard for me to wrap my head around it that someone can wake up one day in a man’s body and say, ‘I think this is all messed up. I think I’m a woman,’ or vice versa,” Cash said.
He then mentioned a proposal he previously introduced that would have restricted trans girls and women from participating in sports teams which align with their gender identity. Lawmakers in Kentucky, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Tennessee have introduced similar bills.
Cash said: “Simply, if you’re a young man, biologically, you cannot claim to be transgender and then compete against young women in sporting events.”
‘Cultural elite’
He then said “our cultural elite” have turned trans issues into the “new front of the civil rights effort” before criticising president Joe Biden‘s “executive order basically saying the same thing”.
“Now, we have a president who wants to say, ‘If the boy says she’s a girl then he, he, she, should be allowed to compete,'” Cash said. “Maybe even use the bathrooms and showers because you cannot deny these transgender person their basic rights.”
Returning to the bill in question, he pledged to seek further limitation against abortion and condemned his colleagues for not standing against abortion and LGBT+ rights enough.
