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News and commentary about the anti-gay lobbyJune 13th, 2016
In a surprising speech, Trump casts himself in solidarity with the LGBT community (as reported by Talking Points Memo):
“Our nation stands together in solidarity with the members of Orlando’s LGBT Community. A radical Islamic terrorist targeted the nightclub not only because he wanted to kill Americans, but in order to execute gay and lesbian citizens because of their sexual orientation… It is an assault on the ability of free people to live their lives, love who they want and express their identity…Radical Islam is anti-woman, anti-gay and anti-American.”
Trump also got in a dig at Hillary Clinton by maintaining that he was in fact a greater supporter of gay and women’s rights than she was: “Ask yourself, who is really the friend of women and the LGBT community, Donald Trump with his actions, or Hillary Clinton with her words? Clinton wants to allow Radical Islamic terrorists to pour into our country—they enslave women, and murder gays. I don’t want them in our country.”
(Update: This was a teleprompter’ed speech, so that explains the relative linearity of Trump’s statement. When you see the video, you’ll notice he really had to slow down with the L. G. B. T.)
Given Trump’s entire campaign history, this strikes me as being about as cynical as anything else Trump has said — which is pretty much everything Trump has said. (It also has to be considered alongside his promises before Faith and Freedom Conference last week.) His Supreme Court picks also speak volumes.
But I really have to give him props for this one. If someone really wanted to talk about “radical Islamic terrorists” in the context of the Pulse massacre, this is exactly how to do it. It also marks a radical turnaround from earlier today when he called it an attack on “our nation.” And it raises the obvious question: why is that so hard for Florida Gov. Rick Scott or other Republican political leaders to say clearly who was attacked?
But — and there’s always a “but” when talking about Trump — he wants to use our deaths, our pain and suffering, for a sinister bait and switch. He wants to offer a conditional acceptance for one group of people to advance a rejection of another group of people.
Mr. Trump vowed to give the authorities more tools to clamp down on terrorists and that, if elected, he would use his executive powers to keep foreign Muslims from entering the country for an indefinite period of time.
Indeed, Mr. Trump appeared to broaden his call for a ban on Muslim immigration, extending it to whole regions rather than applying it strictly according to religion. He said he would “suspend immigration from areas of the world where there is a proven history of terrorism against the United States, Europe or our allies, until we understand how to end these threats.”
He also insinuated that the majority of Muslim Americans were disloyal and subject to being singled out for increased surveillance:
“Muslim communities must cooperate with law enforcement and turn in the people who they know are bad – and they do know where they are,” Mr. Trump said.
But of course, there is a better way to talk about radical Islamic terrorists in the context of the Pulse massacre. Some (though clearly not all) chapters of the Council of American-Islamic Affairs gave taken a pretty good stab at it over the past twenty-four hours.
But we accept Trump’s bargain, if we accept an exchange of homophobia for islamophobia, then shame on all of us.
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Frank DeFrancesco
June 13th, 2016
How can we trust anything he says?
Lucrece
June 13th, 2016
He’s like Rick Scott and Marco Rubio.
They’re pretending to show us any solidarity where there has been none in the past.
Lord_Byron
June 14th, 2016
” It is an assault on the ability of free people to live their lives, love who they want and express their identity”
Say’s the man that said he would stack the SCOTUS with justices who would overturn all the gains that the LGBT community have made.
Hunter
June 14th, 2016
The man (and I use the term advisedly) is disgusting. Period.
And this: ““Muslim communities must cooperate with law enforcement and turn in the people who they know are bad – and they do know where they are,” Mr. Trump said.”
Am I the only one who thinks that sounds just a wee bit threatening?
Hunter
June 14th, 2016
The man (and I use the term advisedly) is disgusting. Period. You’re absolutely right about the bait and switch, and in that light, I’d say his “solidarity” with our community is worth nothing.
And this: ““Muslim communities must cooperate with law enforcement and turn in the people who they know are bad – and they do know where they are,” Mr. Trump said.”
Am I the only one who thinks that sounds just a wee bit threatening?
Ben in oakland
June 14th, 2016
Hunter– no it’s sounds entirely bigoted, as in “those people are all alike.”
SharonB
June 14th, 2016
The man is a demagogue, malignant narcissist, social dominator, and pathological liars. Authoritarians love him. I hate everything he stands for and disbelieve anything that comes out of his mouth. He will say anything to obtain power.
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