On Oct. 25, U.S. Rep. Mike Johnson was elected speaker of the U.S. Housea choice that the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) decried.
In a press release, HRC "condemned his selection by the anti-equality majority and pointed to Johnson's extensive history as an opponent of LGBTQ+ rights as a lobbyist and lawmaker."
According to NBC News, Johnsonwho hails from Louisianais an election denier who was first elected in 2016. Johnson is also a staunch opponent of abortion and LGBTQ+ rights.
"The MAGA House majority has selected the most anti-equality Speaker in U.S. history by elevating Mike Johnsonthis is a choice that will be a stain on the record of everyone who voted for him," said HRC President Kelley Robinson.
Robinson added, "Johnson is someone who doesn't hesitate to express his disdain for the LGTBQ+ community from the rooftops and then introduces legislation that seeks to erase us from society. Just like Jim Jordan, Mike Johnson is an election-denying, anti-LGBTQ+ extremist, and the lawmakers who appeared to stand on principle in opposing Jordan's bid have revealed themselves to be just as out-of-touch as their new leader."
HRC laid out what it called some of Johnson's anti-LGBTQ+ actions, which include:
Sponsoring a national "Don't Say LGBTQ+" bill in the last session of Congress;
Leading a Congressional hearing attacking health care for trans youth, and spreading lies and disinformation; and
Scoring zeroes on HRC's Congressional Scorecard, among other things.
The full press release is at https://www.hrc.org/press-releases/as-extreme-as-it-gets-supposed-moderates-in-gop-conference-choose-as-speaker-an-election-denier-who-called-lgbtq-people-a-deviant-group.
Andrew Davis