Ohio’s homophobic lieutenant governor, Jon Husted, says he’s not a racist or a xenophobe despite firing off a racist, xenophobic tweet last week.
On Friday, Husted tweeted an article about disgraced former CDC director Robert Redfield saying he personally believes the coronavirus “escaped” from the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
“So it appears it was the Wuhan Virus after all?” Husted wrote.
So it appears it was the Wuhan Virus after all?https://t.co/zmimtlZ9Ev
Ex-CDC director says he believes coronavirus originated in Wuhan lab
— Jon Husted (@JonHusted) March 26, 2021
Health officials and Asian Americans have long urged people against stigmatizing people of Asian descent by using the term “Wuhan virus” or “China virus” to describe the coronavirus.
How about we take this to the next level?
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Of course, Husted knows this. We all know this. It’s been widely discussed for the past year now. But he chose to use the racist term anyway. And the fact that he chose to do it right as the nation is seeing an uptick in anti-Asian hate crimes makes it all the more disgusting.
Husted was met with a barrage of negative criticism.
Asian-Americans are getting killed because of rhetoric like this. You represent my state. Do better.
— Dr. Tara C. Smith (@aetiology) March 26, 2021
— jonathan (@milllhaven) March 26, 2021
We’re trying to tamp down violence Asian Americans, John. You’re doing the opposite here.
— MommaOgress (@FracturCritical) March 26, 2021
Pretend you’re better and delete this.
— Ross (@huzzahcoffee) March 26, 2021
Thank you for showing your true colors 🥰
— Ohio Warren Dems (@PersistOhio) March 26, 2021
After being bombarded with responses calling him out for stoking anti-Asian sentiment, Husted wrote a followup tweet saying his remarks were meant to be a criticism of the Chinese government.
“To be clear, the tweet above referred only to the Chinese GOVERNMENT,” he wrote. “A government of oppression that imprisons people of faith, silences dissenters and the media, manipulates its currency and steals our technology.”
“Would anyone be shocked to learn they also lied about a communicable disease that caused a pandemic?”
Would anyone be shocked to learn they also lied about a communicable disease that caused a pandemic?
— Jon Husted (@JonHusted) March 27, 2021
But it’s not just Asian people who Husted seems to hate. He also really, really, really doesn’t like LGBTQ people. Go figure.
Husted holds a D rating with the watchdog group Equality Ohio for his stances on gay marriage and gay adoption, both of which he opposes.
Just to add a little extra grossness to it all, Husted himself was adopted as a child. But he doesn’t think other children should be allowed to have families if those families are LGBTQ.
Graham Gremore is the Features Editor and a Staff Writer at Queerty. Follow him on Twitter @grahamgremore.
Cam
Multiple scientists said that Covid 19 has none of the markers of a lab created virus, but media still keeps interviewing crazy Trump conspiracy theorists.
rural queer socialist
Pardon, but your statement about ‘lab-created virus’ is meaningless in the discussion of etiology. There are MANY POSSIBLE etiologies in China that are not ‘lab-created’: including
– facilitated natural development in a lab (and mishandled)Multiple scientists said that Covid 19 has none of the markers of a lab created virus,
– unintentional natural development in a lab (and mishandled)
– incidental natural development in a lab (no expected, but recognized and mishandled)
– unintentional natural development by bringing bats or other vector-animals into unregulated human contact
– unintentional natural development by allowing unregulated human slaughtering of bats or other vector-animals
– unintentional natural development by allowing unregulated human cooking and eating of bats or other vector animals
-unintentional natural development by allowing unregulated contact of bats and other vector animals with domesticated livestock or other animals
etc
While it is not accurate – yet – to say ‘Wuhan virus’ it is not inaccurate to suspect ‘China-origin virus’.
IN FACT it is LIKELY – by most legitimate scientific – NOT POLITICAL (like the WHO report!) – inquiries to be a CHINA-ORIGIN virus!
So, please stop pretending to be a scientist when making obviously poorly informed and poorly developed arguments.
After all the style of your argument is EXACTLY THE SAME style as saying
“Multiple journalists said that the January violence at the Capital has none of the markers of an insurrection’ …. this statement is TRUE but is it poorly informed and poorly developed? YES – JUST LIKE YOUR statement.
“Multiple fossil fuel energy sector authorities said that Climate Change data have none of the markers of an global crisis’ …. this statement is TRUE but is it poorly information and poorly developed? YES- JUST LIKE YOUR statement.
yendor808
Well, it is Ohio. Unpredictable they’re not. And for you far outnumbered enlightened people living there, my sincerest apologies.
rural queer socialist
THIS COMMENT is BIGOTED and RACIST belittling, demonizing, and dehumanizing groups of Ohio residents.
SirBlushalot
@rural queer socialist
Loosen your g-string, sweetie.
cuteguy
@rural loser socialist is obviously a GQP Faux News loving troll. Ignore the q’ anon trash
cuteguy
Where is the mainstream media public outrage for this fool? Oh wait, they’re following the Faux News lynch mob of Gov Cuomo. When will the GQP cease to exist?
tjack47
Agreed.
rural queer socialist
Actually, by most accounts Governor Cuomo is a SEXUAL CREEP who apparently GROOMED target of his CREEPING.
Fahd
What the hell has gone wrong in Ohio in last years? Obama won the state twice. Did all the sensible people move to another state?
rural queer socialist
You are apparently poorly informed about what states are loosing population:
It is ‘the progressive’ states that are MOST DRAMATICALLY loosing population including
NY (NYC proper)
IL (Chicagoland)
CA (all over)
and where are most of them going:
to Southern States, including
TX
NC
GA
FL
OH is not among the state with any particularly remarkable lost population.
So, you can just keep on BS’ing whatever you like w/o any data or citations but usually that makes one look foolish, ain’t it?
daddytop
No. Many bigots from the progressive states “losing population” moved to Ohio. Being a progressive myself, I’m glad the bigots are moving OUT OF OUR STATES. I moved away from Ohio over 20 years ago, and it’s the best thing I ever did in my entire life.
butchqueen
It’s the trump virus. If he didn’t have his head up his ass for 90 days, hundreds of thousands of lives could have been saved.
JPB
Totally agree – and for that he should face charges of crimes against humanity. But the SOB gets away with every damned thing.
rural queer socialist
My my …. how quickly queer folks FORGET all those unmasked, undistanced, unvaccinated queer drug parties, queer sex parties, queer dance parties, queer house parties, etc – likely infecting hundreds, if not thousands! OBVIOUSLY many queer people had/have there ‘head up their asses’, ain’t it?
HenryCameron
You mean the 90 days when he was blasted as a racist, xenophobic fear monger for trying to limit travel from China (late January), when the Washington Post was saying that the flu was a bigger threat than COVID (Feb 1), when Nancy Pelosi was in Chinatown telling people to come out to shop and dine (late February), when de Blasio couldn’t imagine shutting down New York (early to mid-March), and when Cuomo was ordering nursing homes to accept COVID-infected patients (late March)? That 90 days?
daddytop
What’s the matter, rural queer? Didn’t you get invited to any sex parties?
HenryHawke
Another Republicon who’s so bigoted and ignorant he doesn’t realize he’s being bigoted and ignorant. Seriously, do these jackasses EVER put their brains in gear before they open their yappers and say something that makes them look foolish?
daddytop
No, HenryHawke because they lack a metaconciousness. They simply are not capable of self reflection.
boblrice
Hey @rural
Your comment about those states thar are “MOST DRAMATICALLY loosing population” [emphasis yours] is just not backed by the data.
One of the primary factors for population change from northern states to southern states over the previous 10 years is the retirement of Baby Boomers who, like the generation before them, have retired to warmer climates.
Another primary factor for population loss/gains are due to job loss/growth and the impact of local economic growth or lack there of.
And yet another major factor is simply more deaths than births in the state population.
Prior to Covid, here are the 10 states with the largest population loss in order of decline:
West Virginia, Alaska, Illinois, New York, Hawaii, Louisiana, Connecticut, Mississippi, Vermont, and New Jersey.
California is not in the top 10.
The state with the highest growth, Texas, is due to a combination of job/economic growth and (please note) immigration from Mexico.
There is no doubt that “progressive” states with higher taxes have an impact on population loss, but this is often driven more by retirees who move to states with lower or no income taxes.