California Rep. Ted Lieu made a big statement by keeping quiet on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.
In his speech, the Democratic lawmaker cited two articles that appeared in The Washington Post about the groundswell of legislation affecting the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans.
The two stories Lieu, 53, mentioned were headlined “GOP lawmakers push historic wave of bills targeting rights of LGBTQ teens, children and their families” and “Some Republicans fear party overreach on LGBT measures.”
Both articles cover controversial measures like Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill and others that seek to restrict topics related to sexual orientation and gender identity from school library collections, classroom discussions and curriculum.
“I just thought I would now recite for you what Jesus Christ said about homosexuality,” Lieu told fellow members of Congress while cameras rolled at the U.S. Capitol.
Lieu then remained silent for about 20 seconds before saying, “I yield back,” ending his speech.
The video of his remarks, and his silence, has been viewed more than 1.5 million times on Twitter.
In a June 5 tweet, Lieu made a similar statement in response to a story about Tampa Bay pitchers refusing to wear rainbow logos on their uniforms during the team’s Pride Night celebration.
Jason Adams spoke on behalf of the players about their decision.
“A lot of it comes down to faith, to like a faith-based decision,” he told The Tampa Bay Times. “It’s a hard decision. Because ultimately, we all said what we want is them to know that all are welcome and loved here. But when we put it on our bodies, I think a lot of guys decided that it’s just a lifestyle that maybe, not that they look down on anybody or think differently, it’s just that maybe we don’t want to encourage it if we believe in Jesus, who’s encouraged us to live a lifestyle that would abstain from that behavior, just like (Jesus) encourages me as a heterosexual male to abstain from sex outside of the confines of marriage. It’s no different.”
Lieu, a practicing Christian who is married to a woman, replied to a tweet that included a link to a story with a portion of Adams’ quote.
“Pitcher Jason Adam should read the New Testament. This is what Jesus said about homosexuality,” he wrote, before including a blank space inside quotation marks. “Jesus is about love, not about hating people who are different from you.”
The representative’s comments come during Pride Month, which occurs annually in June to commemorate LGBTQ+ history, celebrate LGBTQ+ culture and continue pushing for equal rights.
What rights do the majority of us have that the Alphabet Mob doesn’t?
Absolutely NONE !!! I believe that those folks just want legislation so they can flaunt their sexual choices.
Lieu should take time to actually read the Bible. It clearly states homosexual behavior is an abomination! What we are talking about, is who one chooses to have sex with! Does anyone seriously care about who others have sex with? That should be between them and God. But, I don’t understand why people “come out”, or are proud that they have sleep with the same sex. Why is it important that your identity is based on your sexual preferences? Not my business and I personally don’t support anything that is an abomination to God. I don’t believe it’s something to be proud of. Stop forcing this lifestyle down our throats! Live your lives and let us live ours.
thank you for stating what most people really think but won’t say.
This is the HUGE hypocrisy when it comes to so called “Christians”. They claim to be Christians yet they truly hate soooo many people. They hate gays, blacks, Mexicans, Jews, Muslims and many more….
Religion. Giving people hope in a world that is torn apart by….RELIGION!!”
Think about that for a little while….
You ate completely wrong. Christians do NOT hate the groups you have mentioned. You have been totally misled. Christians love everyone. That’s what Christianity is all about. To live “Christ” like. We just don’t want them to shove their sexual preferences down our throat just as we don’t shove our preferences down theirs. That’s all. No hate involved. I’m guessing you are not a Christian by your extreme hate. You are sad and I will pray for you.