During a Hardball segment with two Republicans critical of Donald Trump's comments on temporarily halting Muslims from entering the United States, MSNBC's Chris Matthews asked the Log Cabin Republicans's Gregory Angelo, "suppose he said no gays could come in the country?"
Angelo replied that that would not happen because Trump is the most pro-gay of the candidates in the GOP primary field, an answer that Matthews didn't seem to accept, insisting that it was a distinct possibility Trump would call for such an action.
Neither Angelo nor fellow panelist John Brabender made the obvious retort that when it comes to terrorism, the West does not face a bloodthirsty armed radical movement of orchestrated pro-gay (anti-straight?!) terrorism.
Here's the relevant video and transcript:
MSNBC
Hardball
December 9, 2015; 7:33 p.m. Eastern
CHRIS MATTHEWS, host: Suppose he said no gays could come in [sic] the country?
GREGORY ANGELO, Log Cabin Republicans: But he wouldn’t say that.
MATTHEWS: Why wouldn’t he?
ANGELO: Because Donald Trump – your viewers might not believe it – is actually the most pro –
MATTHEWS: I said if he would. I said if he would.
ANGELO: – pro-gay –
MATTHEWS: I said if he would.
ANGELO: He supports amending the Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation non-discrimination. He’s been to a gay wedding, he’s friends with George Takei. His record doesn’t bear out that that would be an enemy to the gay community.
MATTHEWS: How do you explain his tolerance on orientation [sic], but not tolerance on ethnicity?
ANGELO: Because what he’s doing right now is playing to people's fears, Chris. And that when you talk about the numbers that are coming out right now about all these Republican voters who are supporting Trump’s plan, a fanciful plan that could never be realized, keep in mind, this would never happen, but to ban all Muslims from this country. They’re not so much, in my estimation, supporting Trump’s plan, as they are the lack of plan and vision from President Obama.
MATTHEWS: Suppose you were a Muslim, what would you think?
ANGELO: Well, the –
MATTHEWS: What would you think if you were a Muslim, what would you think if you were a Muslim, and you heard that Muslims can't come in the country.
ANGELO: That this was an un-American plan, it’s an un-Republican plan. And that’s, that’s essentially what we said in our statement yesterday. I'm not being an apologist for Trump in that regard, but I would just point out that if we Log Cabin Republicans are for a more inclusive Republican Party, it doesn’t begin and end with members of the gay community.
In fact one of the most challenging things, if you’re fighting for equal rights, it’s easy to fight for your own equal rights, right. Fighting for others is more difficult.
MATTHEWS: I know. Well said. Thank you for saying it.
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