Republicans are well known for their projection: the things they accuse their political targets of doing, they’re doing themselves. Hiding stolen government documents, nepotism, corruption and of course, grooming. During a Missouri legislative committee meeting debating banning gender-affirming care for transgender youth, a witness challenged Republican legislator Mike Moon’s record on child protection given allowing his endorsement of minors to marry.
Moon’s response needs to be workshopped more before it becomes a campaign slogan: “Do you know any kids that have been married at age twelve? I do. And guess what? They’re still married.” Granted, we don’t know if the 12-year-old Moon mentioned is married to another child or to an adult. We don’t know if it was an arranged marriage. Nor do we know if this is a relative of Moon’s, or even his wife. What we do know is it takes a really sick individual to think that a 12-year-old is mature enough to enter into a lifelong commitment and a sexual relationship with anyone.
Moon’s not new to outrageous statements and acts: he once bewilderingly beheaded a chicken during a live feed on Facebook to illustrate a point about abortion.