President Trump Jokes VP Pence Wants To 'Hang' The Gays: Report

WASHINGTON, DC — President Trump reportedly joked about his vice president's position on LGBT rights, saying in a conversation about gay people, "He wants to hang them all!” according to a new profile of Mike Pence in the New Yorker.

The startling line, confirmed to reporter Jane Mayer by two anonymous sources, came after the president needled Pence about his strong desire to overturn Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that established access to abortion as a constitutional right in the United States. The comment about gay people is notable in the context of Trump's purported support for the LGBT community during the presidential campaign. (For more information on this and other political stories, subscribe to the White House Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

Trump: Mike Pence 'wants to hang' all gay people

Since becoming president, Trump has shown little support for policies protecting the rights of LGBT people. He announced a ban on transgender people serving in the military, his Justice Department said civil rights law does not cover discrimination against LGBT people and he has supported Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore of Alabama, who had said homosexuality should be illegal. Asked about Moore's stance on the issue Monday, Trump wouldn't comment directly, saying only that the people of Alabama like him.

Read the full report in The New Yorker>>

A spokeswoman for the vice president later disputed the reporting, while not specifically denying the "hang them all" comment.

"Articles like this are why the American people have lost so much faith in the press," said Pence Press Secretary Alyssa Farah. "The New Yorker piece is filled with unsubstantiated, unsourced claims that are untrue and offensive."

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