Here are some of the week’s most notable quotes culled from news reports from across Texas, and beyond.
Robert Jeffress, a far-right Dallas pastor, in an interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News, remarking on his perception that Christians are being persecuted in the U.S. currently.
I want to remind people that, you know, the Nazis weren’t able to take the Jews to the crematoriums immediately. The German people wouldn’t have allowed for it. Instead, the Nazis had to change public opinion. They marginalized the Jewish people, disparaged them, and make them objects of contempt… [Christians] are being marginalized right now, treated as objects of contempt by the media, and once that happens, then the taking away of further rights will be very easy.
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Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, in an interview with the Texas Tribune, referring to issues like marriage equality and LGBT discrimination.
On some of the volatile issues that you mention, the fact that we weren’t jumping headlong into that, and to kind of blow up the session with these very emotionally volatile issues, the fact that we didn’t do that I think is a good thing in terms of the perception of Texas, in terms of our ability to attract talent from out of state and around the world.
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David Barton, in an interview with Glenn Beck, explaining his vision of the after-effects of gay marriage. Beck agreed, saying, “This destroys all of society.”
Sex also means gender identification. Title IX, which is what all the colleges use for sports, it goes out the door as well. So all your locker rooms now become one locker room, you can’t distinguish between male and female.
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Gov. Greg Abbott, rejecting calls from the religious right for a special session in the legislature to focus on further efforts to prevent same-sex marriage.
I do not anticipate any special session. They got their job done on time and don’t require any overtime.
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Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, in a floor speech at the US House on Thursday, ‘asking’ whether President Obama is an accessory to terrorism.
I am not accusing anybody, I am raising questions. If the United States says, ‘Here, Palestinian terrorist groups, we want to provide you the vehicle to have a powerful place […][and] once you are there, you are going to wipe out Israel,’ does that make the United States’ leaders that facilitate that, does that make them accessories? I am just asking.
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Neil DeGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist and champion of science education, in response to the question, “Is Texas really at the center of the universe?”
It turns out just as the ship at sea, looking in every direction, will conclude that it is at the exact center of its own horizon, because the horizon of earth will be the same distance in every direction, and no matter where it moves, it carries that horizon with it. So the answer is yes.
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Rick Santorum in a radio interview, suggesting that the Pope take a step back from talking about climate change.
The church has gotten it wrong a few times on science. We probably are better off leaving science to the scientists, and focusing on what we’re really good at, which is theology and morality.
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Roy Moore, Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice, in an interview with the Family Research Council during its annual pastors’ retreat.
I think there’s an attempt to destroy the institution of marriage and I think it will cause, literally cause the destruction of our country or lead to the destruction of our country over the long run. And I think there are people who would like to see this country destroyed.
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Rev. Dave Welch of the Texas Pastors Council on Monday, apparently confused about the conclusions that can be drawn from the rejection of discriminatory anti-LGBT legislation (with the support of business, faith, and grassroots communities).
It is an astounding and appalling reality that in one of the most Republican-dominated state governments in the U.S., that the Texas Legislature did nothing meaningful to protect religious freedom, traditional marriage or oppose the radical agenda of sexual gender confusion.
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North Carolina governor Pat McCrory (R) in a statement announcing his plans to veto a ‘license to discriminate’ bill in his state. Texas successfully defeated several similar bills in this legislative session.
Whether it is the president, governor, mayor, a law enforcement officer, or magistrate, no public official who voluntarily swears to support and defend the Constitution and to discharge all duties of their office should be exempt from upholding that oath; therefore, I will veto Senate Bill 2.
