Republicans call flying LGBTQ pride flag at White House a 'disgrace' and 'shameful'

Republican lawmakers are up in arms after President Joe Biden held a Pride celebration on the South Lawn of White House on Saturday and flew the progress pride flag from the Truman Balcony.

Multiple GOP lawmakers falsely claimed that Biden violated the U.S. flag code by displaying the pride flag prominently at the celebration, where hundreds of people gathered to celebrate the LGBTQ community and voice support for LGBTQ rights.

“This is a disgrace,” Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) tweeted, referring to the pride flag flying between two American flags on the Truman Balcony. “Not only is it in breach of US Flag Code, but it’s a glaring example of this White Houses’ incompetence and insistence on putting their social agenda ahead of patriotism.”

According to the U.S. Code, “The flag of the United States of America should be at the center and at the highest point of the group when a number of flags of States or localities or pennants of societies are grouped and displayed from staffs.”

The American flag was flying above the progress pride flag from a flagstaff atop the White House, meaning Biden did not violate the flag code.

“Dear Sen @RogerMarshallMD: I assume you did not intend to spread misinformation; however the picture you attached was misleadingly cropped. I have attached the actual picture which shows there has been no violation of the U.S. Flag Code,” Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) tweeted along with a photo showing the American flag flying atop the White House.

That didn’t stop Republicans from making the false accusation that Biden broke the law by flying the progress pride flag. The progress pride flag is the traditional rainbow flag with the addition of a triangle with white, pink, light blue, brown, and black stripes. The white, pink, and light blue colors represent the transgender community, the brown stripe represents communities of color, and the black stripe is in remembrance of the people who died during the HIV crisis in the 1980s and 1990s.

“Pursuing his twisted agenda, Biden dishonors the American flag and breaks federal law,” Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) tweeted. A Twitter user replied with a picture showing the American flag flying above the White House.

“The flag of the United States of America placed in equal stature on the flank of the alphabet cult battle flag,” Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) tweeted. “The Biden administration is a disgrace.”

Collins went on to tweet a photo of the flags he flies in his office, which include the Christian flag.

Biden, meanwhile, was unapologetic in his support for LGBTQ rights during the Pride event he hosted.

In a speech at the event, he listed the steps he’s taken to support the LGBTQ community during his time in the White House, such as ending former President Donald Trump’s ban on transgender Americans serving in the military, reversing the Food and Drug Administration’s ban on gay and bisexual men donating blood, and signing the Respect for Marriage Act to require the federal government and all states to recognize same-sex marriages. 

He also voiced support for LGBTQ people and their allies amid the barrage of anti-LGBTQ laws Republican-led legislatures are passing across the country. The Department of Justice under Biden has prosecuted hate crimes and filed multiple lawsuits challenging homophobic and transphobic laws. 

“You know, too many people in the LGBT community are worried and afraid about their future and their safety,” Biden said on Saturday. “So today, I want to send a message to the entire community, especially to transgender children: You are loved. You are heard. You are understood. And you belong.”

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.