Supporter Of Arizona's Anti-Gay Bill Mocked Minorities At Arpaio Roast

CATHERINE THOMPSON – FEBRUARY 27, 2014, 2:57 PM EST

This post has been updated.

A Republican state lawmaker in Arizona is defending jokes he made at a roast of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio as satire.

Excerpts of state Rep. John Kavanagh's (R) jokes posted online Wednesday by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) show that the lawmaker, who supported Arizona's vetoed SB 1062 legislation, mocked concerns that the bill could have led to discrimination on the basis of religious liberty.

“I scoffed at that, until tonight," Kavanaugh can be heard saying. "When a Muslim waiter serving up here, walked up to Sheriff Joe, wouldn’t give him his dinner because he said, ‘I don’t serve swine.’ ”

Kavanaugh also joked about Arpaio's profiling of minorities. “I’m not the federal monitor. How many Hispanics did you pull over on the way over here, Arpaio?” he joked.

-snip-

more
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/arizona_republican_mocks_sb_1062_minorities