Oklahoma statehouse candidate in 2013 called gay people ‘worthy of death’ – Yahoo Sports
OKLAHOMA CITY – Two Republican lawmakers in the running to represent Oklahoma City in the state House will be on the ballot Tuesday as they vie for the seat being vacated by Democratic state Rep. Collin Walke.
Republican Scott Esk, 56, who faces Gloria Banister in House District 87, has made headlines lately for old Facebook comments he made in which he wrote gay people are “worthy of death” and “we would be totally in the right” to stone them.
He has defended the comments that he made in 2013, which surfaced when he unsuccessfully ran for a different House seat in 2014.
When contacted this week, Esk complained about a 2014 article about him in The Oklahoman that he called a “hit piece,” although he did not elaborate on the content of the story. Esk declined an interview about his campaign and directed The Oklahoman to videos he posted on his YouTube page.
“I’ve stood up for what is right in the past, and I intend to in the future and I am right now,” he said. “That’s got me in trouble. The media are not my friends, as far as I’m concerned.”
Esk’s old Facebook comments resurface
A self-employed courier who calls himself a Christian constitutionalist, Esk says he’s passionate about protecting Oklahomans from an “out-of-control” federal government through state nullification.
He argues the state can reject federal government mandates it finds to be unconstitutional. On his website, Esk says Oklahoma should nullify edicts from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Food and Drug Administration, and Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
In 2013, in response to an article about the pope saying “who am I to judge?” on homosexuality, Esk posted on Facebook some Scripture that referred to gay people as being “worthy of death.”
A Facebook commenter asked him to clarify his position. “So, just to be clear, you think we should execute homosexuals (presumably by stoning)?” the person wrote.
Esk responded, “I think we would be totally in the right to do it.”
He has railed against an Oklahoma City television station for reporting on the old comments in relation to his current bid for elected office.
“I had an opinion against homosexuality,” Esk said in a July YouTube video he made in response to a KFOR story. “Well, does that make me a homophobe? Maybe some people think it does, but as far as I and many of the voters of House District 87 are concerned, it simply makes me a Christian.”
In an old YouTube video, Esk referred to homosexuality as an “insidious addiction” and said he had moral misgivings about “those kinds of sins.” When questioned about his controversial Facebook comments, Esk said he had no plans to pursue legislation to institute the death penalty for gay people.
Esk has complained that his old comments have become a point of discussion leading up to the Aug. 23 runoff election.
“If it were up to me, we would only be talking about issues between Gloria and me,” he said in a video from July.
Esk said he opposes illegal immigration, health mandates and abortion in all instances. He said he supports the Second Amendment, Oklahoma sovereignty and family values.
He has called COVID vaccines “poison” despite the shots having been safely administered to hundreds of millions of people.
Esk worked at the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety for 12 years. He was fired from his position as a data management analyst in 2011 following allegations that he had threatened and harassed leaders at his church.
Although charges of threatening to perform an act of violence were later dropped, the state said Esk had engaged in conduct “unbecoming (of) a public employee.” Esk denies his actions were threatening.
The alleged harassment of church leaders at the 84th Street Church of Christ stemmed from when Esk’s wife took their three sons and left him in 2007, citing “his physical and emotional abuse towards her and the boys,” according to documents related to his termination proceedings.
Banister touts business background, support for school choice
Banister, 51, and her husband own and operate three small businesses.
The political newcomer said she wants to help make Oklahoma the No. 1 state for small businesses. Banister has talked about cutting regulations and fees that she said can be a hindrance to local businesses.
“As a small-business owner, I understand the need for less government regulations,” Banister said. “I can work toward good, business-friendly government that will benefit everyone in small business.”
Similar to Esk, Banister said the state should push back against “federal overreach,” although she didn’t go so far as to advocate for state nullification.
Specifically, Banister said the federal government shouldn’t have a say in how Oklahoma districts run their schools. She’s also a proponent of school choice.
“When you have school choice, that means the money obviously needs to follow the student,” she said. “If we are failing our students by sending them to public school, that’s a problem.”
It is widely expected that a controversial bill that would have allowed parents to use taxpayer dollars for private-schools costs will make a comeback next year.
Esk and Banister were nearly tied in the June primary. Esk got 36.6% of the vote. Banister had 35.9%.
The winner of the runoff election will face Democrat Ellyn Hefner in the November general election.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Oklahoma state candidate once said gay people are ‘worthy of death’