Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis defended a viral pride ad his campaign shared after the video sparked outrage from the left and some on the right.
The video, made by Twitter account Proud Elephant, criticized former President Trump’s support for LGBTQ rights and contrasted his record with DeSantis’s. It was then shared by the DeSantis War Room on the last day of June.
“To wrap up 'Pride Month,' let's hear from the politician who did more than any other Republican to celebrate it," the War Room account said in sharing the video.
To wrap up “Pride Month,” let’s hear from the politician who did more than any other Republican to celebrate it…
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) June 30, 2023
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The Log Cabin Republicans, the largest group representing LGBT conservatives, denounced the ad as venturing “into homophobic territory” and said it was “divisive and desperate.” Similar sentiments were shared by Bruce “Caitlyn” Jenner, Ric Grenell, former acting director of national intelligence, and others.
But when asked about the video, DeSantis said it was “fair game.”
“I think identifying Donald Trump as really being a pioneer in injecting gender ideology into the mainstream, where he was having men compete against women in his beauty pageants, I think that’s totally fair game,” DeSantis told Outkick host Tomi Lahren.
The Florida Republican noted that Trump is now changing his tune somewhat on gender issues for political reasons.
“He’s now campaigning, saying the opposite, that he doesn’t think that you should have men competing in women’s things like athletics,” DeSantis continued, adding that he would fight to protect women and girls in sports.
“We believe in protecting the rights of our girls and the rights of women athletes to be able to participate with fairness and with integrity,” DeSantis said.
“I think there’s value in making sure our society is rooted in truth and not in social fads,” he added.
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