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Watch: That Time Rand Paul Admitted He Doesn't 'Believe' In 'Gay Rights'

Watch: That Time Rand Paul Admitted He Doesn't 'Believe' In 'Gay Rights'

Have you ever noticed that It’s always interesting to watch 2016 Presidential candidate Rand Paul attempt to justify his various prejudices. Although Paul claims to be a “libertarian” who believes in “liberty”, claims that marriage equality is a state issue — and once admitted that that he opposes the right of LGBT Americans to marry.

“I believe in the historic and religious definition of marriage. I also believe this power belongs to the states and the people, not the federal government,” Paul said last year. “It is illegitimate for the federal courts to intrude here.”

Even further, did you know that he doesn’t believe in gay rights AT ALL? That is to say, Paul says he doesn’t believe they exist — you know, like racism…which he said also doesn’t exit.

In a 2013 video unearthed by Buzzfeed, Paul explained that he doesn’t understand the concept of gay rights because those rights were determined by someone’s lifestyle.

“I don’t think I’ve ever used the word gay rights, because I don’t really believe in rights based on your behavior,” Paul says in the video.

Watch it here:

Some might say that Paul’s remarks are simple a statement about individual liberty. Of course, some of Paul’s other remarks reveal that, in this interview, he was simply attempting to rationalize his own hatred.

“I’m for traditional marriage,” Paul said in a recent interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier. “I think marriage is between a man and a woman. Ultimately, we could have fixed this a long time ago if we just allowed contracts between adults. We didn’t have to call it marriage, which offends myself and a lot of people.” Even more recently, he called gay marriage — a concept in which he does not believe — “a moral crisis that allows people to think that there would be some sort of other marriage.”

The truth is that Paul is pro-discrimination. When defending his opposition to the Civil Rights Act (and his belief that shop owners should be allowed to discriminate), Paul explained:

I don’t like the idea of telling private business owners — I abhor racism. I think it’s a bad business decision to exclude anybody from your restaurant — but, at the same time, I do believe in private ownership.

Asked if ” it would be okay for Dr. King not to be served at the counter at Woolworth’s,” Paul explained that he “would not go to that Woolworths,” but because of the First Amendment, it is important to be tolerant of those whose hatred extends to business transactions.

Paul may claim that he is against discrimination, and that he only wants to protect the rights of bigots to be bigots. But, as a man who has hired multiple white supremacists and openly spews anti-LGBT hatred, Paul may want to rethink any assertion that he is not a bigot.

 

Colin Taylor
Opinion columnist and former editor-in-chief of Occupy Democrats. He graduated from Bennington College with a Bachelor's degree in history and political science. He now focuses on advancing the cause of social justice and equality in America.

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