The heir to Billy Graham's evangelical throne, son Franklin Graham, is telling his flock that Vladimir Putin's state-sanctioned homophobia should serve as a lesson to President Obama.
Writing in his own Decision magazine, Graham called Obama's embrace of LGBT rights "shameful," and said he should follow in Putin's footsteps. The Russian leader signed a bill that criminalizes gay "propaganda" and his government does little to prevent antigay violence.
“Isn’t it sad, though, that America’s own morality has fallen so far that on this issue — protecting children from any homosexual agenda or propaganda — Russia’s standard is higher than our own?," wrote Graham, who included some caveats, saying his support for Putin wasn't unequivocal.
“In my opinion, Putin is right on [LGBT] issues,” Graham writes. “Obviously, he may be wrong about many things, but he has taken a stand to protect his nation’s children from the damaging effects of any gay and lesbian agenda.”
Graham leads the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and often strikes a more polemic tone than his father did during the Reagan and Bush years. Read more here.
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