AFA's Bryan Fischer: Criminalize Homosexuality In All 50 States

The American Family Association's Douchebag-In-Chief Bryan Fischer wants to re-criminalize sodomy in all 50 states.

Is anything Bryan Fischer says surprising anymore? Hardly. He has a long history of making ignorant, hateful, and downright bizarre comments. But that doesn't mean we should stop paying attention to what he's saying.

We need to remember that Fischer has been embraced by many of the GOP's 2012 presidential candidates. His organization hosted Rick Perry's Texas prayer rally. And the AFA continues to host "policy briefings" to introduce GOP candidates to pastors.

Those who have dismissed Fischer as a fringe lunatic with no real political sway are of the same mindset as folks who dismissed Michele Bachmann as too fringe-y to have a shot at higher office.

The Batshit Files: News Roundup | 8.26.11

As we prepare for the impending winds and rain of Hurricane Irene, large swaths of the US are experiencing unseasonable, record-breaking crazy:

• Pat Robertson says the quake-induced crack in the Washington Monument is a sign from God. (Right Wing Watch)

• Rabbi Yehuda Levin blames the earthquake on gay marriage (it's always the gays, isn't it!) (Huffington Post)

• Cindy and Mike Jacobs: The earthquake was a sign from God and that it is a sign that Christians need to teach people about Jesus. (Right Wing Watch)

• Rick Perry compares homosexuality to alcoholism. (Think Progress)

• The 24-year-old man being held in last year’s firebombing of an Oregon mosque ranted about Muslims and referred to himself as a “Christian warrior,” according to documents released. (Sierra Vista Herald)

• Mission America's Linda Harvey: 'There's no proof' that LGBT people exist! (Right Wing Watch)

• Bryan Fischer has single-handedly disproved Darwin with a one-page blog post. (AFA)

• Bryan Fischer WILL NOT STOP his quest to have dominion over the bears! (AFA)

• Santorum: Gays can't marry, because a tree is not a car. (Towleroad)

• A list of 159 priests alleged to have abused children has been released by the Boston Archdiocese. (A little too late?) (Boston Globe)

• Rick Perry has joined Bachmann, Romney, and Santorum, in signing the uber-hateful anti-gay marriage pledge. (Towleroad)

• Joseph Farah, editor of World Nut Daily, has posted an editorial stating that marriage equality will "plunge" America into "the moral abyss of chaos and barbarism." (Right Wing Watch)

• Indiana state Rep. Phil Hinkle (R) admitted that he paid a young man $80 to have a good time, but insisted he isn’t gay and doesn’t know why he did it. (IndyStar)

• Peter LaBarbera says News Corp is pro-gay because it is "based in New York City, which is a gay Mecca." (OneNewsNow)

• In an extraordinary burst of hyperbole, homophobia, and Islamaphobia, NOM says gays have issued a‘fatwa,’ and are waging ‘jihad’ against Christians. (Think Progress)

• Renew America wonders if Obama is a demon. Really. (Renew America)

Douchebag Of The Day: Bryan Fischer

Bryan Fischer, Director of Issues Analysis at hate group American Family Association, is a huge douchebag.  I've called attention to his insanity in these pages on a regular basis, so nothing he says is ever terribly surprising, sadly.

Fischer tweeted the following today:

It cannot be stressed enough that Fischer is not part of the lunatic fringe.  He is in bed with many high profile religious right politicians, including current Texas governor and potential President of the United States, Rick Perry (The AFA is paying for Perry's 'Response' prayer rally in Texas.)

The Batshit Files: News Roundup | 4th of July Weekend Edition

The fifth freedom is freedom from ignorance. - Lyndon B. Johnson
 

• Michele Bachmann's husband says gays are 'barbarians' that need to be 'disciplined' (Towleroad)

• Kansas abortion (temporary?/indefinite?) ban starts tomorrow (Maddow Blog) 

• Rick Perry's non-denominational, apolitical prayerfest: Only Christians allowed (Mother Jones)

• Allowing other faiths to participate in Gov. Perry's prayer rally would "be idolatry of the worst sort" (Right Wing Watch)

• Pat Buchanan: Mexicans are ruining soccer, America. (Media Matters)

• Bryan Fischer actually claims that he has "never seen a Christian treat a homosexual with hatred" (Right Wing Watch)

• Birthers sue Esquire over birther parody piece, seeking more than $200 million. (Forbes)

• Matt Barber of Liberty Counsel: Adopted children Of gay parents are "props" to further "sexual anarchy" (Right Wing Watch)

• Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) on undocumented immigrants: ‘I will do anything short of shooting them.’ (ThinkProgress)

• Ohio legislator sworn in on version of Bible that endorses the genocide of Native Americans. (Plunderbund)

• Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) says gay people "shouldn't feel bad" about a constitutional amendment banning marriage equality. (Right Wing Watch)

• Evangelicals feel more threatened by secularism than sex, violence, Islam, govt, Catholics, etc. (Friendly Atheist)

• Orren Hatch (R-UT) aims to slip abortion bill into Korean free trade agreement. (Mother Jones)

• Tea Party leader says anti-gay bullying is ‘healthy peer pressure’ (LGBTQ Nation)

The Batshit Files: News Roundup | 6.28.11

A whole buttload of crazy for you today:

• Rick Santorum: Liberals want marriage equality in order to ‘undermine faith' (ThinkProgress)

• Pat Robertson says God will destroy America because of gay marriage. (Right Wing Watch)

• Ohio state rep wants to ban abortion because China has too many smart kids (Right Wing Watch)

• Michele Bachmann's fans quickly revise Wikipedia entry for John Quincy Adams to match Bachmann's assertion that he was a Founding Father. (ThinkProgress) 

• Bryan Fischer weighs in on Michele Bachmann's "John Wayne" gaffe ... by claiming that all the Left is doing by mocking her is "reminding us of the clear connection between homosexuality and pedophilia." (Right Wing Watch)

• Bryan Fischer (he's on a roll!) says fidelity in gay relationships "just doesn't happen" and that it is common for gay men to have 500-1000 partners in their lifetimes (Right Wing Watch)

• An Oregon couple who treated their infant daughter with faith healing rather than take her to a doctor were sentenced to 90 days in jail and three years probation. (Oregon Live)

• N.Y. town clerk won't sign marriage licenses for same-sex couples. I suppose she should find a new job? (Daily Kos)

• Chuck Colson says that “the tyranny of tolerance” will drive America into a totalitarian state (Right Wing Watch)

• Catholic Church denies funeral mass to San Diego gay businessman (LGBT Weekly)

• Authorities find bomb apparently targeting immigrants in Arizona (SPLC Hatewatch)

• Michele Bachmann stands by claims that ‘Founding Fathers’ ended slavery (Raw Story)

30 Reasons Why Bryan Fischer is Dangerous and Must Be Stopped

Bryan Fischer, major douchebag

Despite his growing role as a kingmaker in Republican politics, not many people know about Bryan Fischer. His name is benign-sounding, like a cross between a chess player and a washed up 80's pop singer. But don't be fooled. This guy is arguably more dangerous than Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, and any other batshit GOP politician you could name.

The scariest thing about Bryan Fischer is that, despite the fact that he spews hateful bile on a daily basis (via his talk radio show and via his role as spokesperson for the American Family Association), GOP politicians continue to cozy up to him, and (seemingly) none of them seem to believe he should tone it down.

People for the American Way have just released a ginormous profile on Bryan Fischer entitled, The GOP's Favorite Hate-Monger: How the Republican Party Came to Embrace Bryan Fischer. It's exhaustive, and it's scary.

From PFAW's Introduction:

Responsible politicians wouldn’t fawn over an unhinged activist who opposes civil rights and religious freedom for minorities, wants to make being gay a crime and decries his personal rivals as enemies of God, right? But that is exactly what is taking place today in the Republican Party, as likely and declared GOP presidential candidates line up to win the approval of Bryan Fischer...

Fischer’s unabashed bigotry is on full display throughout his writings and on-air rants. His entire career is based on leveling venomous attacks against gays and lesbians, American Muslims, Native Americans, progressives and other individuals and groups he detests. He wants to redefine the Constitution to protect only Christians, persecute and deport all American Muslims, prohibit gays and non-Christians from holding public office and impose a system of biblical law.

While Fischer’s views are undeniably shocking, what is most disturbing is his growing influence within not only the Religious Right but also the Republican Party.

Scary stuff.

Here's a partial list, pulled from PFAW's report, of why Bryan Fischer is full-on batshit and dangerous:

1. He successfully pressured Hallmark stores in Idaho to refuse to carry greeting cards for same-sex weddings.
2. He fought legislation that would provide workplace protections for gays and lesbians.
3. He has likened gays to domestic terrorists, pedophiles, slave traders and murderers, and decried the adoption of children by gay parents as a “terrible, inexcusable, inhumane thing to do to children.”
4. He espouses the view that gays were responsible for the Nazi Party and the Holocaust. 
5. He believes that “homosexuals should be disqualified from public office,” banned from serving as judges and barred from working as teachers, and that “homosexual behavior should be against the law.”
6. He claims that bullying-prevention programs will be used for the “brainwashing” of children to make them gay, arguing that “homosexuals cannot reproduce, so they have to recruit; it’s the only way to swell their numbers.” For example, Fischer believes that the television show Glee is “glamorizing homosexual behavior” and “promoting deviant sexuality,” as well as idolatry.
7. He warned, after DADT was repealed, that the military would “now be feminized and neutered beyond repair” and insisted that “the world is now a more dangerous place for us all.” 
8. He likened African Americans to rabbits.
9. He said Native Americans cannot be considered full-fledged American citizens until they convert to Christianity.
10. He said Native Americans “remain mired in poverty and alcoholism because many native Americans continue to cling to the darkness of indigenous superstition instead of coming into the light of Christianity and assimilating into Christian culture."
11. He says American Muslims are a “toxic cancer” to American society and that Muslim Student Associations are “parasites.”
12. He urged the U.S. to ban the construction of mosques, likened mosques to IEDs, and prayed for the destruction of the Dome of the Rock. He has repeatedly claimed that Muslims are inherently dangerous, unintelligent and mentally ill due to inbreeding.
13. He believes that Muslims must be purged from the military and prohibited from enlisting, and that the U.S. not only ban Muslim immigration but also deport and expel all American Muslims.
14. He maintains that only Muslims who renounce their religion and convert to Christianity should be allowed to come into and live in the U.S. 
15. He maintains that Muslims deserve no First Amendment rights.
16. He believes that the Founding Fathers only wanted to extend rights to different Protestant denominations.
17. He denies the existence of the separation of church and state, and believes that states and localities should be allowed to establish official religions. 
18. He wants to model the U.S. justice system on the biblical law of ancient Israel (He cites Genesis to attack Muslims and uses Leviticus to demonize gays and lesbians).  
19. He says President Obama is tyrannical, anti-Christian and intentionally weakening the country so the U.S. can join “every other nation which has ignored God or kicked him to the curb.”
20. He maintains that Obama “nurtures this hatred for the United States of America” and “nurtures a hatred for the white man.”
21. He believes that progressives are “unpatriotic” and “un-American,” arguing that they want to muzzle Christians and overthrow the Constitution in order to advance their social and political agenda.
22. He blamed Sarah Palin’s unpopularity on actual demonic forces that emerged from the political left, calling criticism of Palin “unvarnished demonic evil on full display” and “pure homicidal rage and hate.” He made clear that his charges of demonic conspiracy were not metaphorical.
23. He urged right-wing activists to have more children in order to give conservatives a numerical advantage in the political and cultural battles of the future.
24. He demands that the government “close down Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and welfare,” claiming that Social Security and Medicare represent an “an ungodly and unconstitutional recipe for national suicide.” 
25. He insists that the only difference between progressives and terrorists is that “so far [progressives] haven’t taken to killing people”
26. He demanded, following the tragic news that the SeaWorld whale Tilikum had killed a trainer, that the whale be put to death. He claimed that the courts should use the “ancient civil code of Israel” in dealing with Tilikum.
27. He blamed a deadly attack by a grizzly bear in Yellowstone Park on the fact that American “culture has jettisoned a biblical view” of animals, and called it a sign that God is punishing America.
28. He maintains that Christians should not vote for any candidate who supports gay rights in any form because, he says, homosexuality is an “abomination in the nostrils of God” that “no rational society should ever endorse.”
29. He said that gays should be “ashamed” and “embarrassed,” contends that the “deviancy cabal” is responsible for suicide among gay youth and that “homosexual activists are not wholly innocent in these tragedies.
30. He says the separation of church and state is an idea straight out of Nazi Germany.

It's very easy for progressives and moderates to look at Bryan Fischer and assume that someone with these ideas would never be taken seriously, much less garner serious political clout.  Those people are forgetting that the same thing has been said about potential GOP presidential candidates Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, and Rick Santorum, who have been mocked endlessly by the left.

Ben Adler wrote of Bryan Fischer's growing influence in Newsweek:

You might think that attention in the form of mockery is not what a public-policy organization would want. But when your business is waging a culture war, there is no such thing as bad publicity for ideological or rhetorical extremism. Being criticized by liberals in the media raises the profile of a socially conservative organization, and burnishes its credibility among the base. Just ask Sarah Palin, or her fans.

Fischer's radio show is distributed on over 200 stations across the country, and reaches over 2 million listeners. While that may seem like chicken scratch compared to Limbaugh or Beck, Fischer's show attracts some of the GOP's biggest names. Guests on Fischer's show include: Herman Cain, Mike Huckabee, Tim Pawlenty, Haley Barbour, Newt Gingrich, Michele Bachmann, Jim DeMint, Jim Inhofe, Roger Wicker, Lamar Smith, Steve King, Jack Kingston, etc., etc.

Many of these GOP figures have expressed support for Fischer's bigotry and extremism, even making campaign promises to Fischer to enact legislation supporting some of his views, or to repeal certain legislation he disagrees with.

Aside from the realization that more people think like Bryan Fischer than one would imagine, is the scariest realization of all: This man might actually run for president one day.

The Batshit Files: News Roundup | 6.15.11

 A whole buttload of crazy:

• Citing the Bible, a government recreational facility in Kentucky forced two gay males with developmental and intellectual disabilities to leave the premises. (KYEquality)

• Family Research Council: Gay-straight alliances make kids unhealthy (Right Wing Watch)

• Rick Perry says he's a prophet and that's why Texans don't like him much. (Houston Press)

• American Family Association's Bryan Fischer: Gay adoption is a "social disaster." (Right Wing Watch)

• More than 70,000 so-called "moral police" officers have been deployed in Tehran to enforce a government approved dress code. (Al Jazeera)

• Southern Baptists still totally (and officially) believe in Hell. (Associated Baptist Press)

• Rush Limbaugh is launching his own line of tea, featuring Limbaugh as Paul Revere on the label. (Raw Story)

• Tea Party camp. For kids. Really. (Crooks & Liars)

• Texas Republican says it is ‘very insulting’ to use Spanish in his presence. (Raw Story)

• Glenn Beck, huge Ayn Rand fan, despises Ayn Rand. (Huffington Post)

Bryan Fischer: Gays Responsible For The Nazi Party

Bryan Fischer, total dickhead

Bryan Fischer, of the American Family Association (the hate group sponsoring Gov. Rick Perry's prayer and fasting rally) wants to clear something up.

He never once said that gays were responsible for the HOLOCAUST. He said that the gays were responsible for the NAZI PARTY (which was responsible for the Holocaust).

Remember, folks! Bryan Fischer will be praying for America alongside Texas governor and potential GOP presidential candidate Rick Perry on August 6 at the seven-hour fasting and prayer-fest, Response: A Call to Prayer For a Nation in Crisis. 

The Batshit Files: News Roundup (Rapture Edition) | 5.20.11

Your daily tub o' crazy:

• The "Don't Say Gay" bill has passed in Tennessee senate in a 20-10 vote. Gay kids appear to still be gay. (The Advocate) 

• Rush Limbaugh says "The global warming people" are "almost identical" to the rapture people, which is almost identical to saying meteorologists are almost identical to palm readers. (Media Matters)

• Palin has a "fire in her belly" for possible White House run. Hopefully it's something she ate. (Fox News)

• Michele Bachmann's headbanging anti-gay BFF says Obama's not a Christian during MN House prayer. (Mother Jones) 

• Gingrich says young people should have to pass a history test before they are allowed to vote. If he knew his history, he would know that this would be illegal under the 1965 Voting Rights Act. (ThinkProgress)

• End Times enthusiast Tim LaHaye says Obama and Clinton are not Christians. They're Socialists. (Right Wing Watch)

• Bryan Fischer, the wart on the ass known as the AFA, says gay activists are the "number one perpetrators of hate crimes in America." (Right Wing Watch)

• Unattractive evolutionary psychologist Satoshi Kanazawa may lose his job for his article stating "black women are significantly less physically attractive than women of other races."(Jezebel)

• It's official: Kentucky will grant tax incentives to the ark park. (NCSE)

• The 16-year-old NJ girl who challenged Michele Bachmann to a debate has been threatened with violence and called a "whore."  (KARE)

The Batshit Files: News Roundup | 5.18.11

Your daily bucket o' crazy:

• Kirk Cameron says Stephen Hawking is wrong about Heaven: "Why should anyone believe Mr. Hawking's writings if he cannot provide evidence for his unscientific belief that out of nothing, everything came?" Yes, Kirk, why would anyone believe something without evidence? Oh, wait. (TMZ)

• Harold Camping, the Christian broadcaster and President of Family Radio, the group claiming The Rapture is coming Saturday May 21, explains how it's all because of gay people. (Towleroad)

• The AFA's Bryan Fischer stated on his radio show that gays are literally Nazis and that they will "do the same thing to you that the Nazis did to their opponents in Nazi Germany." What a dick. (Right Wing Watch)

•  The following words actually came out of Newt Gingrich's mouth: “Any ad which quotes what I said on Sunday is a falsehood.” Is he a Jedi? (Firedoglake)

• Texas Governor and complete douchebag Rick Perry could make a run for president. *shudder*  (Religion Dispatches)

Bryan Fischer (American Family Association): Obama Hates America and White People

Bryan Fischer, weighing in on the whole Common silliness, provides further evidence that he is completely batshit: