Sometimes I think Republicans get a bad rap from mainstream journalists, who tend to be more sympathetic to liberals and Democrats. The problem may be particularly acute when it comes to social conservatives, whose views seem especially unpopular among journalists.
But right now three conservative Republican presidential candidates are mostly getting a free pass from the media on their appalling judgment over the weekend.
Ted Cruz, Bobby Jindal, and Mike Huckabee spoke at a conference in Des Moines called ÔÇ£Freedom 2015: National Religious Liberties Conference,ÔÇØ a two-day event that began last Friday. Now, that doesnÔÇÖt sound so bad. In fact, my colleagues at the Cato Institute and┬áI┬áhave recently defended the rights of┬áHobby Lobby, the┬áLittle Sisters of the Poor, and the┬ábakers┬áand┬áphotographers┬áwho┬ádonÔÇÖt want to participate in same-sex weddings.
But this conference was about something far different from liberty, although you wouldnÔÇÖt know that from bland media coverage like this┬áCBS News article. So itÔÇÖs a good thing that The Daily Beast and┬áRachel Maddow of MSNBC picked up the story, with video from People for the American WayÔÇÖs RightWingWatch.
The conference was organized by Kevin P. Swanson, a minister in Colorado and host of the Generations Radio Show. Swanson is part of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and the far-right fundamentalist Christian Reconstructionism movement, which author Walter Olson wrote about at length in 1998. Swanson gave the conferenceÔÇÖs opening and closing talks and interviewed Cruz, Jindal, and Huckabee. And in his closing keynote address, Swanson ranted at length about topics that would hardly be characterized as religious liberty:
YES! Leviticus 20:13 calls for the death penalty for homosexuals. YES! Romans Chapter 1, Verse 32, the Apostle Paul does say that homosexuals are worthy of death. His words, not mine!  And I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And I am not ashamed of the truth of the word of God. And I am willing to go to jail for standing on the truth of the word of God.
To read the full article, visit The Daily Beast