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Santorum denounces killing of gays in Iran

But renews pledge to reinstate DADT, fight marriage equality

Published

14 years ago

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Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum (Blade photo by Michael Key)

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum on Thursday pledged to speak out against the executions of gay people in Iran — calling it “a grave moral wrong” — and accused President Obama of not addressing the issue.

“I would talk about it,” Santorum said. “This president doesn’t talk about those things. He doesn’t talk about the torture, he doesn’t talk about the killing of women and gays and imprisonment. These are fundamental violations of human rights that I would speak about.”

Santorum made the remarks in a brief interview with the Washington Blade in D.C. at the 2011 Value Voters Summit, a convention for social conservatives hosted by the Family Research Council.

The GOP presidential hopeful spoke with the Blade after a giving a speech in which he criticized Obama for not defending the anti-gay Defense of Marriage Act in court and for allowing military chaplains to officiate at same-sex weddings.

Santorum also pledged to fight marriage equality “in every state to make sure that marriage remains between one man and one woman.” He backs a U.S. constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage throughout the country.

Speaking with the Blade, the former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania pledged to speak out against the killing of gays in Iran when asked to clarify remarks he gave in August during a presidential debate. At the time, Santorum called Iran a ‘mullahcracy’ that “tramples the rights of women, tramples the rights of gays, tramples the rights of people all throughout their society.”

In Iran, sodomy is an offense subject to the death penalty. Just last month, Iran reportedly executed three people who were convicted of engaging in same-sex sexual relations.

Chris Barron, chair of GOProud, said Santorum is “absolutely right” about the violations of human rights against gays in Iran.

“We believe strongly that basic human rights should know no geographic boundary,” Barron said. “We thank Senator Santorum for having the courage to speak out with moral clarity on this issue.”

Barron commended Santorum while saying the Obama administration has failed to address the issue.

“While leaders like Israel’s Bibi Netanyahu have addressed the United Nations about the barbaric treatment of gay people in Iran, this administration has chosen to turn a blind eye,” Barron said.

Despite claims Obama hasn’t addressed the issue, the president has spoken up more generally in favor of LGBT rights during a speech last month before the United Nations General Assembly, making him the first sitting U.S. president to do so.

“No country should deny people their rights to freedom of speech and freedom of religion, but also no country should deny people their rights because of who they love, which is why we must stand up for the rights of gays and lesbians everywhere,” Obama said.

Also during the interview with the Blade, Santorum wouldn’t venture to say whether he thinks being gay is a choice when asked if he shares the views of fellow GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain, who earlier this week stated that view.

“I think there’s all sorts of studies that are contradicting on that subject,” Santorum said.

Major psychological institutions — including the American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association and the American Psychiatric Association — have stated that sexual orientation can’t be changed and that so-called reparative therapy practices are dangerous.

Santorum also addressed his previously stated pledge to reinstate “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” if elected president. He said he doesn’t know whether he would do so administratively or whether that would have to be achieved through legislation.

“I’d have to study the issue,” Santorum said. “I don’t know. At this point, I’d have to — I can’t say how, but I certainly would work toward that.”

A transcript of the exchange between the Blade and Santorum follows:

Washington Blade: Herman Cain said earlier this week that homosexuality is a choice. Is that a view you share?

Rick Santorum: Ah, well, I think there’s all sorts of studies that are contradicting on that subject.

Blade: You’ve said you’d reinstate “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” if elected president. Would you do that administratively, or would that have to be through legislative means?

Santorum: I’d have to study the issue. I don’t know. At this point, I’d have to — I can’t say how, but I certainly would work toward that.

Blade: One thing you said in August that really jumped out during the presidential debate was you criticized Iran for trampling the rights of women and gays. I’m just wondering what rights-trampling you’re objecting to.

Santorum: Ah, they’re killing them. They’re killing people because they’re gay, which is a grave moral wrong.

Blade: And how would you address that as president?

Santorum: I would talk about it. This president doesn’t talk about those things. He doesn’t talk about the torture, he doesn’t talk about the killing of women and gays and imprisonment. These are fundamental violations of human rights that I would speak about.

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Pennsylvania

Pa. House passes bill to codify marriage equality in state law

Governor supports gay state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta’s measure

Published

2 hours ago

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March 26, 2026

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Pennsylvania Capitol Building (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill that would codify marriage equality in state law.

House Bill 1800 passed by a 127-72 vote margin. Twenty-six Republicans voted for the measure.

The Republican-controlled Pennsylvania Senate will now consider the bill that state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (D-Philadelphia), who is the first openly gay person of color elected to the state’s General Assembly, introduced. Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro supports the measure.

“Here in Pennsylvania, we believe in your freedom to marry who you love,” said Shapiro on Wednesday. “Today, the House has stepped up to protect that right.”

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Florida

DeSantis signs emergency bill that restores Fla. ADAP funding

Temporary funds to last through June 30

Published

17 hours ago

on

March 25, 2026

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Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (Screen capture/NBC News)

After the Florida Department of Health made huge cuts to the AIDS Drug Assistance Program in January, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed emergency legislation restoring HIV access to more than 12,000 Floridians.

Two months ago, as the Washington Blade reported, the Sunshine State cut the vast majority of those in ADAP by shifting the income levels required for eligibility — without following standard procedure when changing government policy outside of legislative or executive action.

The bill, signed by DeSantis on Tuesday, passed both chambers of the Florida Legislature unanimously and appropriates $30.9 million in emergency bridge funding through June 30, 2026. It restores Florida’s ADAP income eligibility to 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Level — the level it was prior to the January cuts. The legislation also requires the FDOH to submit detailed monthly financial reports to legislative leadership beginning April 1.

Under the old policy, eligibility would have been limited to those making no more than 130 percent of the federal poverty level, or $20,345 per year.

“For 10 weeks, 12,000 Floridians living with HIV did not know if they could fill their next prescription. Today, they can,” Esteban Wood, director of advocacy and legislative affairs at AIDS Healthcare Foundation, said in a statement.

The detailed reports now required to be sent to legislative leadership must include all federal revenues and expenditures, including manufacturer rebates; enrollment figures by county and insurance status; prescription utilization by drug class; and any projected funding shortfalls. This is the first time the Legislature has required this level of financial transparency from the program.

DeSantis signed the legislation one day after a Leon County Circuit Court judge denied AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s request for an injunction to block the significant changes the DeSantis administration is making to the program, which it claims faces a $120 million shortfall for calendar year 2026.

AIDS Healthcare Foundation, a national organization focused on protecting and expanding HIV healthcare access and prevention methods, filed a lawsuit over the change in eligibility, arguing the Florida Department of Health did not follow the laid out path for formally changing policy and was acting outside established procedures.

Typically, altering eligibility for a statewide program requires either legislative action or adherence to a multistep rule-making process, including: publishing a Notice of Proposed Rule; providing a statement of estimated regulatory costs; allowing public comment; holding hearings if requested; responding to challenges; and formally adopting the rule. According to AIDS Healthcare Foundation, none of these steps occurred.

The long-term structure of ADAP will be determined by the 2026–2027 fiscal year state budget, something that lawmakers have until June 30 to finish.

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Federal Government

Markwayne Mullin confirmed as next DHS secretary

Okla. senator to succeed Kristi Noem

Published

2 days ago

on

March 24, 2026

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The U.S. Senate confirmed Markwayne Mullin as the next secretary of Homeland Security on Monday, as the agency continues to grapple with what lawmakers have described as a “never-ending” funding standoff, with Democrats attempting to withhold funding from one of the nation’s largest and most costly agencies.

Mullin — a Republican senator from Oklahoma, former mixed martial arts fighter, and plumbing business owner — was confirmed in a 54–45 vote. Two Democrats — U.S. Sens. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) — sided with Republicans in supporting his confirmation.

The new agency head is expected to follow the policy direction set by President Donald Trump, emphasizing stricter immigration enforcement. This includes proposals to support immigration agents at polling sites and to cut funding to so-called “sanctuary cities.”

Mullin replaces Kristi Noem, who was fired earlier this month following a widely scrutinized 2-day congressional hearing on Capitol Hill.

During the hearing, Noem faced intense questioning over her response to several crises, including the fatal shooting of two American citizens in Minneapolis by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, a $220 million border security advertising campaign that featured her on horseback near Mount Rushmore amid one of the largest federal workforce reductions in U.S. history, and the federal response to major natural disasters such as the July 2025 Texas floods and Hurricane Helene in 2024.

Noem had previously drawn criticism for a series of policy decisions in South Dakota that broadly focused on restricting the rights of LGBTQ individuals. In 2023, she signed House Bill 1080, banning gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors. She also signed legislation and executive orders restricting trans athletes’ participation in women’s sports, as well as the state’s “Religious Freedom Restoration Act,” which critics argued enabled discrimination against LGBTQ individuals. Additionally, the state canceled contracts related to LGBTQ support services — including suicide prevention and health care navigation programs‚ and later agreed to a $300,000 settlement with trans advocacy group, The Transformation Project.

Despite her removal from DHS, Noem will remain in the Trump-Vance administration as a special envoy for the “Shield of the Americas,” an initiative aimed at promoting U.S. influence in the Western Hemisphere, including efforts to counter cartel networks, reduce Chinese influence, and manage migration.

The new head of DHS has served in Congress since 2013, in both houses of the federal legislature. While in the Senate and a member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, Mullin has been a vocal critic of policies aimed at expanding LGBTQ inclusion. He led a group of lawmakers in urging the Administration for Community Living to reverse a rule requiring states to prioritize Older Americans Act services based on sexual orientation and gender identity, arguing the policy could have unintended consequences.

Mullin also makes history as the first Native American — and a citizen of the Cherokee Nation — to lead the Department of Homeland Security. He was also among the 147 Republicans who voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election results despite no evidence of widespread fraud, and was present in the U.S. House of Representatives chamber on Jan. 6.

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