Marco Rubio: Firing People for Being Gay Should be Legal

Marco Rubio - Anti-Gay Asshole

The more I see of Marco Rubio, the more I despise the man.   Now Rubio says he doesn't support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act because he thinks it should be perfectly legal to fire employees if they are gay.   Apparently Rubio is (i) so bigoted, (ii) so stupid, or (iii) so eager to whore himself out to the white supremacist base of the GOP that he hasn't figured out that his approach to gays is identical to that of white racists who think it should be fine to fire Hispanics.  If Rubio is the future of the GOP, that future is somewhat frightening.  Think Progress interviewed Rubio where he enunciated his contempt for LGBT citizens.  Here are highlights:

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), who is touted as a top GOP presidential prospect in 2016, thinks it should be legal to fire someone for their sexual orientation.

ThinkProgress spoke with the Florida Senator at the opening luncheon of the annual Faith and Freedom Forum on Thursday and asked him about the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), a bill to make discrimination against LGBT individuals illegal across the country.

Though Rubio bristles at the notion of being called a “bigot,” he showed no willingness to help protect LGBT workers from discrimination. “I’m not for any special protections based on orientation,” Rubio told ThinkProgress.

KEYES: The Senate this summer is going to be taking up the Employment Non-Discrimination Act which makes it illegal to fire someone for being gay. Do you know if you’ll be supporting that?

RUBIO: I haven’t read the legislation. By and large I think all Americans should be protected but I’m not for any special protections based on orientation.

KEYES: What about on race or gender?

RUBIO: Well that’s established law.

KEYES: But not for sexual orientation?

Workplace discrimination is an all-too-frequent reality for LGBT individuals. Two out of every five openly lesbian, gay, or bisexual employees have reported discrimination at their jobs. Among transgender workers, that figure rises to nine out of ten.

Though other Republicans have applauded Rubio’s so-called “middle ground” on LGBT issues, his record of late tells a far different story. In addition to opposing ENDA and marriage equality, Rubio also said today that he would walk away from his own immigration bill if it includes protections for gay couples.

LGBT workers aren’t asking for “special protections,” as Rubio would have people believe. They’re asking to be treated like everyone else and be allowed to do their job without fear of being harassed or fired for who they are.

The reasons to not be a Republican just seem to keep on growing.  Having been fired for being gay myself, few things enrage me more that this kind of bigotry.