Josh Hawley

—Leveled a dangerous and misleading QAnon-influenced attack on Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown-Jackson, falsely accusing Jackson of “saying publicly it is a mistake to assume child pornography offenders are pedophiles.” The “liberals are child predators” is a frequent trope of QAnon, the racist, pro-Trump and wildly false conspiracy theory that has been deployed against many minorities including LGBTQ people in the United States and in Russia, among other places.

—Announced his support of anti-LGBTQ U.S. Rep Vicky Hartzler of Missouri in her primary contest for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat. 

—Falsely claimed at a Senate hearing for the Equality Act that it would force individuals, adoption agencies, and other service providers to “change [their] faith-based practices or face government punishment.” The Equality Act expands existing civil rights protections for people of faith, women, people of color and LGBTQ people. It prevents businesses from refusing to serve LGBTQ people based on religious objection. Religious organizations have recognized they can serve LGBTQ people without a conflict to their beliefs.

—Objected to the Electoral College count affirming the legal election of Joe Biden for President; encouraged rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6th.

—Co-sponsored a bill targeting transgender children from participating in sports; voted to support an anti-transgender amendment tacked onto COVID-19 relief package; voted against COVID-19 relief that provided $2.8b to Missouri.

—After losing a book deal because of his encouragement of the January 6^th insurrection, complained about being a victim of “cancel culture” in appearances with anti-LGBTQ groups like Focus on the Family, and in media appearances with WGEM, KSDK, KTVO, KOAM, KMBC, KYTV, KRCG, KMOX, 41 Action News, KCMO radio, KWTO, the St. Joseph News Press, and Nexstar TV. The editorial board of the Kansas City Star says Sen. Hawley has “blood on his hands” by encouraging the coup attempt. 

—Criticized the Supreme Court decision that bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in the workplace. The court ruled that Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, national origin and sex, protects gay and transgender workers. “You know, to me, for someone who has said, Justice Gorsuch, who said that he’s a textualist and an originalist, I just don’t see how you get there with that methodology,” Hawley told the Washington Examiner.

—Said of the Supreme Court decision that protects gay and transgender workers: it “represents the end of the conservative legal movement.”

—Following the Supreme Court’s Obergefell marriage equality ruling, as a Republican candidate for Missouri attorney general, Hawley wanted the state legislature to exempt businesses and religious groups from participating in same-sex couples’ marriage ceremonies. At the time, gay rights advocacy group PROMO said Missouri law already permitted such discrimination.

—Signed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court defending a taxpayer-funded agency’s right to discriminate against same-sex couples looking to foster a child.

—Made a floor speech at the U.S. Senate opposing the Equality Act.