Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) attempted to distance himself from a homophobic message shared on his X account, blaming a staffer for the post. As Pride Month began, the far-right conservative faced backlash for writing Tuesday that “homosexuality has no place in America.” The post, which also said “Happy Nuclear Family Month,” has since been deleted.
Ogles Deflects Blame
Hours later, Ogles stopped short of issuing an apology as he went into cleanup mode. “Earlier today while working on the farm, my phone began going crazy because of a post made by a member of my comms team,” he wrote on X. “The post was stupid, hurtful and a complete distraction from my America First focus. The employee has been reprimanded.”
Bipartisan Condemnation
Ogles faced condemnation from both sides of the aisle. Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) responded to Ogles’ “idiotic” statement with a quote post, which said: “Homosexuality exists. In America. In fact Andy, you have family, friends, neighbors, colleagues and constituents who are gay and lesbian.” Speaking to TMZ, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said that “for all of recorded history, homosexuals have been part of humanity.” “The behavior of consenting adults is their business,” Cruz continued, calling himself a “libertarian by nature.”
In a post, Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) called Ogles’ post a “horrific and disgusting thing to say.” “The LGBTQI+ community makes America great, unlike bigots like you,” Thanedar said.
History of Offensive Remarks
Ogles has a history of making deeply offensive statements. Reacting to Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show in February, the Tennessee congressman characterized the performance as “gay pornography” and “pure smut.” In March, Ogles wrote on social media: “Muslims don’t belong in American society,” apparently reacting to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani slamming an anti-Islam rally organized by a pardoned Jan. 6 insurrectionist.
