Watch as Republican State Senator Lee Bright rails against same-sex marriage in one of the most bigoted, hate-filled, religious-themed speeches ever made.
South Carolina Republican State Senator Lee Bright has a long history of working against the rights of LGBT people. The 45-year old is serving his second four-year term on the board of trustees for the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberties Commission, along with carrying out his duties as a state senator since he was elected in 2008.
Last year, Sen. Bright tried to push through a bill that would allow state employees to refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples based on their religious beliefs. He followed that act with one this year that called for judges whose rulings support marriage equality to be impeached.
“Congress ought to stand up and do its job and impeach one of these federal judges,” Bright told a Tea Party group. “And I think when you do that, being a federal judge is a pretty good gig, and I think if you’ll impeach just one, the rest of them will do the right thing. And they’ll do it out of necessity, because self-preservation is an instinct that so many folks have.”
Later, in April, Bright railed against what he claims is “indoctrination” of college students into “the homosexual agenda.”
Fast forward to today.
The South Carolina legislature is meeting in a special session called by GOP Gov. Nikki Haley to debate taking down the Confederate flag from in front of the state house. So, naturally, Sen. Bright used his time this morning to speak about the “abomination” of gay people and same-sex marriage.
Mentioning President Barack Obama’s visit to his state to deliver the eulogy for Bright’s fellow state senator, Clementa Pinckney, he noted Obama had sung “Amazing Grace.” Then he launched into a diatribe about seeing “the White House be lit up in the abomination colors!”
“It is time for the church to rise up. It’s time for the state of South Carolina to rise up. Romans Chapter 1 is clear, the Bible is clear. This nation was founded on Judeo-Christian principles and they are under assault by men in black robes who were not elected by you.”
Bright called for judges who issue marriage licenses to “not have to betray their faith or compromise their faith,” presumably in an attempt to get his scuttled bill back on the agenda, “in order to subject themselves to the tyranny of five judges.”
“Our governor called us in to deal with the flag that sits out front,” Bright admitted, instead demanding the Senate “deal with the national sin that we face today!”Â
“We talk about abortion but this gay marriage thing. I believe will be one nation gone under like President Reagan said, if we’re not one nation under God, we’ll be one nation gone under.â€
“And to sanctify deviant behavior from five judges, it’s time for us to make our stand, church!†Bright screamed, apparently forgetting which body he was addressing. “It’s time to make our stand and we’re not doing it.â€
“The devil is taking control of this land and we’re not stopping him,” Bright preached, suggesting the state “get out of the business of marriage, because we cannot succumb to what’s being done to the future of this nation.”
“Now, I believe that the Christ teaches us to love the homosexual, but he also teaches us to stand in the gap against sin,†he said. “And we need to make our stand. I know how people of all colors feel about this.â€
“We cannot respect this sin in the state of South Carolina.”
“Let’s deal with marriage. If we’re not going to find some way to deal with marriage like our forefathers did or push back against a tyrannical government like he founders of this nation did, let’s at least not put these citizens in South Carolina in a position where they’ve got to choose between their faith and their jobs.â€
You can watch Senator Bright’s insane diatribe below, or on C-SPAN:
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UPDATE:
Right Wing Watch notes Sen. Bright is Ted Cruz’s presidential campaign state co-chair
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Image: Screenshot via C-SPAN
Hat tip: Mediaite and Jezebel
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