Rep. Pete Sessions said that Pulse, the Orlando nightclub that was the site of the shooting that killed 49 people, was not a nightclub for gay people. Spokespeople for Sessions, the House Rules Committee chairman, later clarified his statement.
Reporters had asked Sessions the question regarding whether the massacre would change his opposition to the Maloney Amendment, an attachment that would prohibit federal contractors from discriminating against LGBT individuals, according to the
Daily Beast.
"It was a young person's nightclub, I'm told. And there were some [LGBT people] there, but it was mostly Latinos," the Texas Republican said, according to Daniel Newhauser, a reporter with the National Journal.
Rep. Sessions' staff sent Newhauser an update on Sessions' comment, saying that Sessions made a mistake. Newhauser reported what they said in a tweet:
Sessions spokeswoman Caroline Booth clarified Sessions' statement in an interview with
Mic.
"What he meant was that yes, it was a gay club but there were people of all walks of life there," the spokeswoman said.
After the Orlando shooting, the House Rules Committee did not allow a vote on the Maloney Amendment, according to
The Hill.
In May, Republicans defeated the Maloney Amendment by one vote, according to the
Dallas News.
After Democrats said that Republicans were in favor of discriminating against LGBT people, Sessions defended the vote, saying, "We're following procedures. We do not discriminate."
The
Human Rights Campaign, a pro-LGBT advocacy group, rates Rep. Sessions as having "zero percent" support for LGBT votes, according to its Congressional scorecard.
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