Congressman: 'Deviancy' protected by 'hate crimes'

A congressman from Iowa says he fought the so-called "Hate Crimes" bill as it moved through the U.S. House, because it essentially will provide a level of protection for sexual deviancy in the United States that is not afforded any other behavior.

Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, was interviewed today by WND columnist Janet Porter, who also heads the Faith2Action Christian ministry.

"Americans need to know what's going on here in Washington," he said, "when we get these radical positions … the public needs to know."

He said the bill provides protection for those with "sexual orientation" issues but then doesn't define the terms. So he said it's apparent that all of the 547 'philias' – or as he described them "deviancies" – would be protected under the law.

"Anything you can imagine, no matter how revolting it might be," King said.

He said he suggested an amendment that would make it clear pedophilia was not a protected "sexual orientation" under the law, but the Democrats, who are in the majority, refused to accept that.

"It was a breath-taking thing," King said. "Their strategy was that if they exempted pedophiles, there were a number of other proclivities they would have to exempt as well."

The audio of King's interview with Porter is embedded here:

By special arrangement through WND, for only $10.95 members of the public can send 100 individually addressed letters to each senator by overnight mail. Each letter is individually "signed" by the sender. The letters ask for a written response and call for opposition to the bill, including by filibuster if necessary. More than 4,000 people have sent 400,000 letters to the Senate through this program in seven days, and the program has been extended indefinitely while the Senate has the plan pending.

King also warned the bill provides federal money to have the Justice Department help local law enforcement agencies enforce their own "hate crimes" laws.

"A pastor might be preaching from Leviticus or Romans; that could be a direct violation of a city ordinance," he said. "Under Title 18 in the federal code, if you are shown to aid, abet, to counsel or to in some way influence one of those 'incidents,' you are as guilt as the principal," he said.

"We could see pastors thrown in jail for a decade for the content of their sermons," he warned.

King said he read part of George Orwell's "1984" into the congressional record:

"This is what was written in 1949: 'We don't care about any overt action, it's the thought we care about because if we control the thought, we control the action,"' he said.

"That's where we are today," he warned.

A hearing on the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act, already approved by the U.S. House as H.R. 1913 and pending in the Senate as S. 909, is expected in the Senate Judiciary Committee soon. It's been described by Shawn D. Akers, policy analyst with Liberty Counsel, as a bill to create penalties against "victims" who were chosen based on an "actual or perceived ... sexual orientation, gender identity."

According to Rep. Louis Gohmert, R-Texas, in a nation of more than 300 million people, there were only 242 recorded assaults on record under the cited "epidemic" against homosexuals.

WND has reported multiple times on the developing legislation – a plan that failed under President Bush when he determined it was unnecessary and most likely unconstitutional.

Radio talk icon Rush Limbaugh has warned his audience about the advancing threat of "hate crimes" laws.

"Some people are going to be put in jail for things that they say," he said. "Hate crime legislation. That's where they determine what's in your mind when you commit a crime. That's when they decide what you were thinking … If you were thinking unapproved thoughts, that would make the crime you committed even worse."

"For those who say the 'Pedophile Protection Act' isn't accurate here's a bit of a review. In committee, Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, offered the amendment to exclude pedophiles from receiving elevated protection in the House version of the bill … [suggesting] 'The term sexual orientation as used in this act or any amendments to this act does not include pedophilia,'" said Porter.

"It's straightforward. And it was rejected," Porter said.

Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Fla., confirmed that anyone with any "disability or all of these 'philias' and fetishes and 'isms' … need not live in fear."

William Greene of RightMarch.com.
"Critics say that would allow for prosecutions against pastors who preach a biblical ban on homosexuality if someone who hears such a message later is accused of any crime. A pastor's sermon could be viewed as 'hate speech' under this legislation if it's heard by someone who then commits an act of violence against someone based on 'sexual orientation.' The pastor could be prosecuted for 'conspiracy to commit a hate crime,'" according

The Institute on Religion and Democracy joined in the campaign of concern.

"All victims of violence are already rightly protected by law, no matter the motive of their assailants," said IRD President Mark Tooley.

WND reported when Texas Rep. Louis Gohmert said the only chance to defeat the legislation was for a massive outpouring of opposition from the American people.

"If you guys don't raise enough stink there's no chance of stopping it," Gohmert said on a radio program.

"It's entirely in the hands of your listeners and people across the country," Gohmert said in an interview with Porter. "If you guys put up a strong enough fight, that will give backbone enough to the 41 or 42 in the Senate to say we don't want to have our names on that."

President Obama, supported strongly during his campaign by homosexual advocates, appears ready to respond to their desires.

"I urge members on both sides of the aisle to act on this important civil rights issue by passing this legislation to protect all of our citizens from violent acts of intolerance," he said.

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