Sears recently gave the commencement address at a Christian college that describes “homosexual conduct” as “indecent” and “obscene”

VIRGINIA – New reporting from the Daily Beast highlights Winsome Earle-Sears’ extreme position on LGBTQ rights, including leaving a note that she is “morally opposed” to legislation protecting marriage equality. 

Sears has also sidestepped questions about her stance on marriage equality and recently gave the commencement address at Regent University in Virginia Beach, a Christian college that describes “homosexual conduct” as “indecent” and “obscene.”

“Winsome Earle-Sears is more focused on pushing her extreme agenda forward than standing up for Virginians. Sears must explain why she went out of her way to leave this note when she won’t even answer basic questions about where she stands on issues like Medicaid and Virginia jobs,” said DPVA Spokesperson Maggie Amjad. 

The Daily Beast: MAGA Rising Star Scribbles Nutty Note on Gay Marriage Bill 

• The Republican nominee for Virginia governor scrawled a handwritten note on a bill passed by the state assembly saying she was “morally opposed” to same-sex marriages.
• Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears added her personal touch to the legislation to protect gay marriages passed by Virginia’s General Assembly and signed by current Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
• Her signature was required as president of the state senate to show that the measure had been passed into law. But Earle-Sears then went one step further.
• “As the Lieutenant Governor, I recognize and respect my constitutional obligation to adhere to the procedures laid out in the Constitution of Virginia,” she wrote. “However, I remain morally opposed to the contents of HB 174 as passed by the General Assembly.”
• HB 174 amended the laws in Virginia to mandate that marriage licenses should be issued irrespective of “sex, gender, or race.” It includes a provision allowing religious organizations and clergy members to decline to officiate if they feel the ceremonies “violate their conscience.”
• The bill became law in July 2024, but Earle-Sears’ scribbled entry has only just come to light.
• After learning about the Lt. Gov.’s handwritten addition, he said he’d never heard of a comparable incident: “She knows I’m an openly gay Black state representative, so the fact that she wrote something personal on my bill, knowing that she knows me and my family, that was somewhat disheartening,” he added.
• The GOP nominee had previously sidestepped questions about whether she would support banning gay marriage in Virginia, saying in 2022: “The Supreme Court has already said that that’s not going to be part of the issue. That’s a whole other thing that’s totally different from abortion. I’ve been on the record as saying that, when it comes to civil unions, I’m all for that.”
• Civil unions are different from marriages as they do not entitle partners to some federal benefits, such as joint filing of taxes, and are not recognized in different states.
• Earle-Sears was the commencement speaker last month at Regent University in Virginia Beach, a Christian college that describes “homosexual conduct” as “indecent” and “Obscene.”

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