Republican Sen. Paul Gazelka was a guest on Bradlee Dean‘s Saturday evening radio program to talk about the amendment to put a ban on same-sex marriage into the Minnesota Constitution. Over the course of the program, which is part of Dean’s controversial ministry, You Can Run But You Cannot Hide, Gazelka spoke about activist judges and concerns that Republicans might be labeled “homophobes” or “bigots.” Dean and sidekick Jake McMillian said that homosexuals are criminals and America will be destroyed if homosexuality isn’t criminalized.
“We want you to cover this topic of the marriage amendment,” McMillian said to Gazelka. “The immoral crowd, a lot of folks don’t want to see this happen.”
“I would not call it the gay-marriage bill; it’s a defense of traditional marriage bill,” Gazelka responded, adding that it simply defines marriage as between one man and one woman, and it protects marriage from the judiciary branch.
“It’s been just known that that’s the definition, but over the last series of years activist judges around the country have just arbitrarily thrown out those marriage laws and said they were unconstitutional,” said Gazelka, pointing to the decision in Iowa several years ago.
“We feel like this is going to be a choice, made by a handful of judges, a handful of legislators or the people of Minnesota.”
Gazelka won his seat by defeating fellow Republican Sen. Paul Koering, who was the state’s only openly gay Republican elected official. Anti-gay groups campaigned heavily in the district to help Gazelka win.
McMillian said, “You and your colleagues that are in support of this are not scared of anything. You’re saying, ‘Hey, let’s bring it to the public.’ You notice the other side, and I’m talking about the immoral crowd, what they want to do is legislate away law and create new rights that never existed.”
He said it was happening “because the church laid down, if you will, when they said ‘Well, the judge said sodomy was OK’ and that was the first infringement on the law.”
He continued, “I support what you are doing because I believe it’s right, and I think the people will realize where law comes from: It comes from God.”
Gazelka said that a poll from the Minnesota Family Council and the National Organization for Marriage showed that people want the measure on the ballot.
“We have had done some polling within the last 6 months — first of all, whether or not people want to vote on this amendment — around 75 percent that want the opportunity to vote. It’s a lower number that wants to vote for it, but in the end it’s hard to predict,” he said, adding that Christian groups are more likely to vote for the amendment once it is one the ballot.
“But they are concerned about being labeled a homophobe and a bigot,” he said. “The Christian perspective should be about truth and love. It’s not being a bigot or a homophobe, but saying that marriage has limits.”
To that McMillian added, “I am a redeemed creature. Any homosexual can be a redeemed human being, but when it comes into lawless action it’s our duty as Christians to know what they law is and act on it.”
The Brainerd Republican said that the bill is expected to hit the Senate floor this week.
McMillian said, “We need to support guys like Sen. Paul Gazelka, Sen. Warren Limmer [the bill’s author], and all the other senators that are out there supporting this bill.”
Dean said that conservatives shouldn’t care if people call them homophobes. “Conservatives that are afraid they might be called a homophobe. ‘Oh no! Somebody might be calling me names! Or how bout bigots, oh no!” he said. “Read the law and you’ll know who’s doing the hating. It’s them that are doing the hating. They did it to Jesus Christ. Are they not going to do that to you?”
Dean added, “We are exposing them for their lies against the righteous. [Homosexuality] has been illegal since the foundation of our country. It has been illegal. It’s the conceived sin of homosexuality. The end of sin is death and that’s exactly what [homosexuality] does.”
McMillian chimed in, “It’s against the law; sodomy is against the law. Homosexual unions are against the law.”
Dean added, “And until America gets there, they are going to be destroyed.”
The full exchange can be heard at the Sons of Liberty podcast page.
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