Texas Lt. Gov. Blasted for Ill-Timed 'Man Reaps What He Sows' Tweet After Orlando Massacre
Republican Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick was still trying on Monday to put out a blaze of criticism sparked on social media Sunday by a Bible verse he posted a few hours after a deadly shooting spree at a popular gay club in Orlando which left at least 49 people dead.
"Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows," noted Patrick in the now controversial tweet of Galatians 6:7 highlighted on an image of a ploughed field.
After a barrage of reactions to the tweet many found insensitive and judgmental, Patrick released a statement explaining that the Bible verse had not been posted in reaction to the Orlando massacre but had been scheduled to post on his page since last Thursday, several days before the shooting.
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"This morning, as every Sunday morning for the past several years, we post a verse from scripture. Those posts are chosen in advance and scheduled in advance. As noted to the media earlier, the post from Galatians, that received many hateful comments, was put on the schedule Thursday. Our scripture was not posted in reaction to the shooting," he said in the statement.
"The verse has nothing to do with God's judgement on any one person or a specific group of people. If some chose to read into it what they wanted they either have never read Galatians Chapter 6 or have misread it," he said.
Patrick who eventually removed the Bible verse from his social media accounts later Sunday also explained why he made that decision.
"Some wanted the post pulled down and others did not. Let me be clear, I didn't pull down the FB post & tweet because God's word is wrong. His word is never wrong. Taking down his word would be like tearing a page from the Bible because we didn't like what God was telling us. I took it down to stop the hateful comments and the misinformation being spread of God's message to all of us — straight or gay," he said.
"God's message to all of us in the world is that of love and forgiveness — not hate. Jesus was clear that the only way to the Father was through him. We are all sinners, straight or gay, and we all fall short of heaven and eternal life unless we accept Christ as our Savior. He died on the cross for all of us. Let me repeat that. He loves us all and died for all of our sins," he continued.
Patrick replaced the Galatians 6:7 Scripture was with one from Psalm 37:39 which says: "The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord; He is their stronghold in time of trouble."
At least 49 people were killed by 29-year-old shooter Omar Mateen at the popular gay Pulse nightclub in Orlando early Sunday. He was reportedly an ISIS sympathizer who beat an ex-wife regularly and was most recently upset by two gay men openly kissing and touching in front of his family.
In a follow-up post to his Facebook page Monday morning, Patrick criticized President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton for refusing to connect the Mateen to radical Islam.
"CNN reported that 3 weeks ago the terrorists (sic) tried to buy level 3 body armor and was refused by the store. Should the store have notified law enforcement? Would that have led to an immediate investigation by the FBI? The FBI had already questioned him in 2013 and 2014," said Patrick.
"We are a nation of soft targets everywhere how do you defend them. Some of the media and both the President & Hillary still refuse to name radical Islamic terrorists as the issue even though the killer praised ISIS in a 911 call during the attack. ISIS praised him. Is this an issue our leaders must finally acknowledge?
Does our military need to go back to the mid- east and help wipe out this threat once and for all? What would you do as President to end terror in our country?" he added.
Critics however continued attacking Patrick Monday calling him out for a "history of anti-LGBT rhetoric."
"You need to learn the value of a true apology for your tweet. Even if it was pre scheduled their (sic) are so many more positive verses you could share," wrote Nikki Mallaby.
Patrick replied: "I do treat everyone as equals. I am not hostile toward anyone. I disagree with men in ladies rooms, and was not in favor of gay marriage. One can disagree with people on issues without hating them. I don't hate anyone. My heart breaks for the people who lost their lives & their families as much as you. They were Americans. This madness of terror must end and the entire free world must join together to eradicate it. The free world has sat back too long and allowed ISIS to spread around the globe."
Another critic, Jose Pepe Arreazola Jr., noted: "Republican Dan Patrick is a disgrace to Texas. That's what he said after yesterday's deadliest mass shooting in US history, which happened in a LGBT nightclub. Coincidence? I don't think so."
Patrick replied: "Jose the post was scheduled days before the shooting. We don't get up at 8 am on Sunday design a graphic and select a scripture in response to news from the weekend."
