Minnesota has seen the best and worst of its society in the debate of a constitutional amendment to limit marriage to heterosexual couples. The best was Sen. John Kiesel, who was a profile of courage. The worst was the pastor invited to give the opening prayer, Bradlee Dean, a profile of perfidy (as in a deliberate breach of faith when you agree to give a nondenominational prayer and then give a sectarian diatribe). Dean’s record of hateful and bigoted statements was well-known before he was invited to the legislature to start off the day of debate on the rights of homosexual citizens to marry.

Bradlee Dean is a Minnesota radio host who believes that homosexuality should be a crime. He sports a tattoo of Abraham sacrificing Isaac on his forearm and spews extreme interpretations of the Bible. He seems to cultivate the image of a bible-thumping Axel Rose and plays in a Christian rock band. He is the founder of You Can Run But You Cannot Hide International.

This historical sense seems as questionable as his biblical sense given his timeline running from World I to World II to “Korea and Iwo Jima and Vietnam.”

He then gives his view of

“It’s not about the Baptists, it’s not about the Catholics alone or the Lutherans or the Wesleyans or the Presbyterians, evangelicals or any other denomination, but rather the head of the denomination, and his name is Jesus, as every president up until 2008 has acknowledged.”

Of course, the reference to 2008 reference is to Barack Obama. Of course, nondenominational appears to exclude Jews, Muslims, and most of the world. He is able to tie in Obama as atheist or Muslim (he leaves this to the imagination of legislators). It is the type of speech that should have served to expose the intolerance and hatred that has become so prevalent in out society — even before the moving speech of Sen. Kiesel. Instead, members continued their push to deny marriage rights to gay couples.

Here is “Pastor” Dean at work on his radio show:

The person responsible for inviting Dean appears to be Rep. Ernie Leidiger, R-Mayer (left). Various members of both parties have denounced the prayer. Rep. Leidiger succeeded in introducing a uniquely intolerant voice in the legislature and uniting members of both two parties in their disgust for Dean and his message. It is hard, however, to blame Dean has been known as an unhinged extremist for years. The blame must fall on Leidiger who may need more time as a furniture salesman that selling religious bigot to the legislature. He previously ran on the pledge that his “conservative values” would bring “back to honesty and respect for constituents.” Well, it appears that would be respect for some constituents.

Kudos: Swarthmore Mom on passing along the Youtube video

Jonathan Turley