Senate hopeful slams LGBTQ+ military recruitment campaign: ‘We need alpha males’
Republican candidate for the US Senate in Virginia, Hung Cao. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Republican candidate Hung Cao, who is running to represent Virginia in the US senate, has slammed a US Navy LGBTQ+-inclusive recruitment campaign.
During a debate between Hung Cao and incumbent Democratic senator Tim Kaine at Norfolk State University on Wednesday (2 October), news anchor Deanna Allbrittin asked the Republican about the Department of Defense, and his previous ridiculing of the Biden administration for its diversity, equity and inclusion recruitment policies.
Retired navy captain Cao responded by attacking a drag queen the navy used in a past recruit campaign.
Yeoman second-class Joshua Kelley, who is non-binary and performs as Harpy Daniels while in drag, was one of its five digital ambassadors from autumn 2022 until March 2023.
“When you’re using a drag queen to recruit for the navy, that’s not the people we want,” Cao said. “What we need is alpha males and alpha females who are going to rip out their own guts, eat them and ask for seconds. Those are young men and women [who] are going to win wars.”
Cao even posted his response on his own X/Twitter profile where it has received more than 50,000 likes.
Following online outrage, Kelley was forced to respond. In a video on TikTok, he said: “Haters only hate when you are winning.”
Kelley previously told PinkNews that Harpy is a “fierce, fun and fabulous queen” who “lives to entertain, give poise, grace and serve body and face”, adding: “Harpy is the rounded package deal of charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent. She sees beauty in all and lives to inspire others to be yourself.”
In September, an annual report highlighted the decline in the number of employers committed to inclusive hiring practices.
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