Republican Rep. Steve King of Iowa has created an entire new industry. Too bad he doesn’t understand the concept of consent.
Anti-gay conservatives incapable of empathy or respect like to throw down one-liners because it makes them feel superior and slightly more in control, at a time when the nation is quickly changing and advancing in a more progressive direction.
So it’s not surprising that in Iowa yesterday, as he was traveling with fellow homophobe Mike Huckabee, U.S. Congressman Steve King (R-IA), quipped that the Supreme Court’s ruling in Obergefell last month meant that from now on, “you can marry my lawnmower.”
Journalist Matt Taibbi was on hand for the attack, and posted this tweet:
Of course, many people think it’s funny, but the truth of the matter is it’s damaging to the institution of marriage – of which King claims to be an ardent defender – and it’s hurtful to the millions of LGBT Americans who, despite finally having been recognized by the Supreme Court as full and equal citizens, at least when it comes to marriage, are still fair game for the bigots, homophobes, and haters.
It turns out, the “you can marry my lawnmower” slur is part of King’s stump standup routine.
Just days after the ruling, King, traveling the state, used the same line, telling supporters a few lies in the bargain.
“It’s a fact of history that children do better in a home with a mom and a dad,” King said, according to the Pilot Tribune.”There’s no better way to impart our values from one generation to the next than a mother and father who are committed to each other and that are blessed with children in a natural union.”
King – falsely – claimed that kids raised in a one-man, one-woman household “contribute more to society. They’re better behaved, their faith is stronger, their education gets a little better,” which is poppycock. And an attack not only on same-sex headed households, but on single parents as well.
“The civil government got into the business of promoting and supporting Holy Matrimony because these basic values are the building blocks of our civilization. Now, the Supreme Court has ruled that they’re not. Their ruling really says anybody can marry anybody — and eventually it will be in any combination. I had a strong, Christian lawyer tell me yesterday (Tuesday, June 30) that, under this decision that he has read, what it brings about is: It only requires one human being in this relationship — that you could marry your lawnmower with this decision. I think he’s right,” King concluded.
Here’s another conclusion – and a prediction: Steve King is a dying breed. In less than a decade the vast majority of Americans will look upon his words and file them in the same place that the hate-mongering of the KKK lives today.
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Image by Mike via Flickr and a CC license
Hat tip: Slate
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