Gay Alabama lawmaker threatens to expose affairs of marriage equality opponents
“I will not stand by and allow legislators to talk about ‘family values’ when they have affairs, and I know of many who are and have. I will call our elected officials who want to hide in the closet OUT.”
— Alabama State Rep. Patricia Todd (D., Birmingham), the state’s first openly gay lawmaker, in a Facebook post, AL.com reports. Todd’s outburst followed comments from Republican state lawmakers, who objected to U.S. District Judge Ginny Granade’s ruling Friday which struck down the state’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Alabama’s House Speaker, Mike Hubbard (R., Auburn), stated that it was “outrageous when a single unelected and unaccountable federal judge can overturn the will of millions of Alabamians who stand in firm support of the Sanctity of Marriage Act…. We will continue defending the Christian conservative values that make Alabama a special place to live.”
“This (is) a time where you find out who are accepting, loving people. To say I am disappointed in Speaker Hubbard comment’s and Attorney General Strange choice to appeal the decision is an understatement,” Todd wrote in her Facebook post. “I will not stand by and allow legislators to talk about ‘family values’ when they have affairs, and I know of many who are and have. I will call our elected officials who want to hide in the closet OUT.”
“Don’t start throwing bricks at my window when yours is already cracked as well,” Todd told AL.com. “I’m very upset about Hubbard’s (comments) and what he said about the ruling.”
Hubbard issued a response to AL.com regarding Todd’s post. “I consider Rep. Todd a friend, and we have always enjoyed a good and cordial relationship, so I am sorry that she is upset about my remarks,” Hubbard stated. “We do have a fundamental disagreement on allowing same sex marriages in Alabama, and I will continue to voice my opinion on this important social issue, just as I expect she will continue to voice hers, but we can disagree without being disagreeable.”
Image Credit: Patricia Todd / Facebook
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