Brian Brown, president of the National
Organization for Marriage (NOM), on Tuesday lashed out at Georgia
Governor Nathan Deal over his rejection of an anti-gay bill approved
by lawmakers.
House Bill 757 sought to protect
opponents of marriage equality. Critics of the measure, which
included major companies and the Hollywood industry, said that it
would allow businesses to discriminate against the LGBT community.
(Related: Georgia
Gov. Nathan Deal vetoes anti-gay bill.)
In a blog post titled Victory,
Betrayal and Backlash, Brown praised North Carolina Governor Pat
McCrory for signing a bill into law that effectively nullified an
LGBT protections ordinance in Charlotte and attacked Deal for his
veto. Both governors are Republicans.
“In Georgia, turncoat Republican
Governor Nathan Deal just vetoed an extremely modest bill to protect
pastors and churches from having to participate in same-sex
'weddings' and give some minor protection to religious schools from
having to hire someone who openly opposes their religious beliefs,”
Brown wrote. “Deal ignored dozens of examples of discrimination
against people of faith that have occurred across the country and
instead adopted the approach advocated by LGBT extremists that any
accommodation of religious objections to gay 'marriage' amounts to
'discrimination' against gays and lesbians. Deal and the extremists
demand that every single person, religious organization and small
business in Georgia agree to personally participate in a same-sex
'wedding' ceremony if asked, regardless of their deeply-held
religious views.”
“Emboldened by their successes and
the retreat of those who had pledged to support people of faith, the
activists will mount an all-out assault through the courts and
legislatures to proactively force every American to salute their
agenda at risk of massive civil fines, loss of livelihood and even
imprisonment.”
“Bullies must be confronted and
defeated or they will wreak havoc on those they confront. NOM is
fighting the LGBT bullies and extremists, including challenging their
corporate allies and the gutless politicians who succumb to their
pressure,” Brown added before asking for a donation.