Trump could be preparing an anti-LGBTQ executive order
HRC calls rumors of discriminatory order "deeply troubling"
President Donald Trump could be preparing to sign an executive order specifically targeting the LGBTQ community.
Rumors are swirling that the White House is prepping an anti-LGBTQ order, something unsurprising given Trump’s administration is stocked with anti-LGBTQ personalities and the president himself has previously said he would sign anti-LGBTQ legislation should it cross his desk.
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer refused to comment at the daily press briefing on whether or not Trump would sign such an order, saying he was “not getting ahead of the executive orders that we may or may not issue.”
“There’s a lot of executive orders, a lot of things the president has talked about and will continue to fulfill but we have nothing on that front now,” he added.
If the rumors are true, it would confirm fears that his administration wants to approve discrimination against the LGBTQ community under the guise of “religious freedom.”
The Human Rights Campaign issued a statement today calling the possibility of such an order targeting LGBTQ people “deeply troubling.”
“The rumors of an anti-LGBTQ executive action by President Trump are deeply troubling. We already know that he is willing to target and marginalize at-risk communities for his perceived political gain,” said JoDee Winterhof, the Human Rights Campaign’s Senior Vice President for Policy and Political Affairs. “As the President and his team plan their next steps, we want to make one thing clear: we won’t give one inch when it comes to defending equality, whether it is a full-on frontal assault or an attack under the guise of religion.”
Winterhof singled out Vice President Mike Pence, who approved a discriminatory anti-LGBTQ bill while Governor of Indiana, saying he “should know that better than anyone given his track record in Indiana.” Pence’s signing of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act drew widespread condemnation.
Should Trump’s administration prep an executive order targeting LGBTQ people, HRC have vowed to “fight tooth and nail against every effort to discriminate.”
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