Christian conservative Kevin Swanson on
Thursday declared that God sent hurricane Harvey to punish Texas for
not passing a bill that sought to restrict bathroom access for
transgender people.
Despite being endorsed by Texas
Governor Greg Abbott and Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, both of
whom are Republicans, the bill died in the House during a special
session that ended earlier this month.
(Related: Texas
lawmakers adjourn without passing transgender bathroom access bill.)
Swanson, who helms Generations with
Vision Ministry, told his radio listeners that Harvey is God's
judgment on Houston and other cities that embrace “sexual
perversion.”
“Jesus sends the message home: Unless
Americans repent, unless Houston repents, unless New Orleans repents,
they will all likewise perish,” Swanson
said. “That is the message that the Lord Jesus Christ is
sending home right now to America.”
Swanson blamed the storm on a number of
factors, including the election of former Houston Mayor Annise Parker
– the city's first openly gay mayor – whom he described as “a
very, very aggressively pro-homosexual mayor,” and state lawmakers'
recent failure to pass a bill “that would have prevented
cross-dressing men from using the women's restrooms,” saying that
lawmakers who blocked the bill “wanted to encourage the abomination
of men attempting to dress like women and women attempting to dress
like men.”
“I think that the entire state of
Texas and the entire United States of America needs to take note of
this,” Swanson warned, “and realize that there is a God in
heaven. He brings His judgments and He calls nations to repentance,
as He is doing right now.”