Texas Republican Congressman Pete Sessions, an Eagle Scout, says he disagrees with the Boy Scouts of America’s recent decision to lift its ban on gay adult leaders, but plans to remain part of the organization anyway.
Presumably referring to LGBT advocates, Sessions says the policy change was the result of “outside factors trying to literally ruin the Boy Scouts of America.” He also blamed the decision on nondiscrimination laws designed to allow people to file lawsuits against the Scouts and “take us to our knees.”
Sessions, who represents a Dallas-area district, told NBCDFW.com:
“Let’s put it this way: I disagree with it, but I’m sticking with Scouting. … Scouting is there for the young man and the boy, and there are outside factors trying to literally ruin the Boy Scouts of America over something they don’t understand. We are an organization that is about taking young boys and getting them prepared for their future. … I disagree with it. I would not have done it, and I think if we keep dwelling on this inside the organization, we do ourselves harm. We now need to move forward. It was done because of a series of laws across the United States that were designed to sue the Boy Scouts of America and take us to our knees. I think we’ve better alive even if I disagree with exactly what that policy is.”
As Think Progress notes, the Scouts’ decision to lift the ban on gay adult leaders had little, if anything, to do with nondiscrimination laws. Rather, the policy change was the result of pressure from corporate donors and leaders such as President Barack Obama, as well as rapidly shifting public opinion on LGBT equality.
Nevertheless, on the shock meter, Sessions’ statements about the Boy Scouts seemingly pale in comparison to the one he made last week about gun violence, which he blamed on “diversity in America.”
Watch Sessions’ remarks about the Boy Scouts beginning at about the 5:28 mark in the video below.
