Topline
A long-shot bill to prohibit any standard besides the American flag from flying at U.S. embassies gained a handful of new Republican cosponsors on Tuesday – the first day of Pride Month.
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – 2020/06/14: A Black Lives Matter banner, a United States national flag and a … [+]
Key Facts
Reps. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), Rick Crawford (R-Ark.) and Brian Mast (R-Fla.) have signed on as cosponsors to the “Only Old Glory Act,” announced Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.), who introduced the bill.
That brings the bill, which was previously first introduced in 2018 and again in 2019 and 2021, to 20 cosponsors, mostly members of the right-wing Freedom Caucus.
Duncan’s office said the bill was initially a response to an unspecified U.S. embassy in South America flying a “rainbow” LGBT pride flag, also pointing to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s decision in May to allow embassies to fly Black Lives Matter flags.
The bill’s backers include controversial Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), who drew headlines in February for saying “rogue members of the State Department” were flying “the flag of the radical Marxist group, Black Lives Matter.”
Tangent
The bill comes the same day Biden signed a proclamation declaring June LGBTQ Pride Month, urging U.S. citizens to “recognize the achievements of the LGBTQ+ community, to celebrate the great diversity of the American people, and to wave their flags of pride high.”
Crucial Quote
Duncan said in a statement that “no other flag or symbol can portray our American values” better than the American flag, while Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.), an original cosponsor of the bill, said, “The U.S. Flag is the preeminent symbol of American exceptionalism and should never be used as a prop to promote any agenda or political ideology.”
Chief Critic
Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, also a progressive candidate for U.S. Senate in 2022, attempted to defy a ban on “unauthorized flags” at the Pennsylvania State Capitol by flying an LGBT flag at his Capitol office, only to announce hours later it had been taken down. “I can’t say I am surprised, but I am deeply disappointed that the flags were removed, on the literal start of Pride Month,” he said in a statement.
What To Watch For
The bill will likely not even make it onto the House floor – much less pass – given the Democratic majority in the chamber. But, if Republicans take the majority in 2022, the bill could get consideration.
