LGBTQ/MIKE PENCE/TRUMP PEOPLE: “Vice President Mike Pence hosted Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and his same-sex partner at the Naval Observatory for the Friends of Ireland breakfast on Thursday [3-14-19]. While the Pences hosted Varadkar last year as part of an annual trip the Irish delegation makes to Washington, this year the vice president and his wife, Karen Pence, also invited Varadkar’s partner, Matthew Barrett…Pence’s support for the LGBT community has been called in to question throughout his political career. Pence, a staunch conservative Christian, signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act while he was governor of Indiana. Critics of the law contend that individuals and businesses could use it to discriminate against the gay community on the basis of religion. Pence also signaled support for federal funds to be allocated for gay ‘conversion therapy’ on his 2000 US House campaign website, where it said ‘resources should be directed toward those institutions which provide assistance to those seeking to change their sexual behavior.’ Karen Pence recently came under fire for accepting a job as an art teacher at a private Christian school that bars LGBTQ students, parents and employees.”
–Jamie Ehrlich, “Pence hosts Irish prime minister and his partner at Naval Observatory,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, March 14, 2019 5:06 pm