Fox News personality Tucker Carlson doesn't seem to know what bisexuality is or how it works.
That's what prompted Oregon Governor Kate Brown, a Democrat, to respond after Carlson spent a portion of his program criticizing her sexuality alongside her recent announcement of an outdoor mask mandate in her state.
Brown is the country's first openly bisexual statewide office holder and first openly bisexual governor.
Speaking on his show last week, Carlson said:
"Why is this relevant? Well, the media didn't explain, they told us without exactly explaining what it meant, that this fact was historic and it was highly thrilling."
"Kate Brown's sex life was shattering ceilings. Woo-hoo."
He then went on to suggest that it is "weird" and "confusing" that Brown is married to a man:
"And yet if you looked a little closer, you noticed something a little weird. Actually Kate Brown was married to a man."
"Yes, he had a different last name, but he was still, as they say on TikTok, binary. He was a dude. That's fine, of course, but it was also a little confusing."
"How does having a groom at her wedding make Kate Brown an official member of the LGBTQ community? No one bothered to ask."
Does Carlson even know how bisexuality works?
Bisexuality is defined as being sexually attracted not exclusively to people of one particular gender, such that one is equally attracted to both men and women.
Brown soon responded, taking Carlson to task for his rant.
Writing on Twitter, she noted that being attracted to both men and women is "what bisexual means."
She then offered words of advice for other bisexuals who might be experiencing similar erasure and bigotry:
"To every bisexual person out there struggling to explain to your friends and family who you are and who you love: you are not alone."
"Don't let the bullies stop you from being true to yourself. You might even be a governor someday."
Social media users praised Brown for her response and offered sharp criticisms of Carlson.
Carlson has been known to share anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric in the past.
The GLAAD Accountability Project notes that Carlson was a member of the "Jesse Helms Foundation" while in college, throwing support behind a conservative senator noted for his highly vocal opposition to homosexuality.
Carlson was also a member of the "Dan White Society," an organization that supported the San Francisco politician who assassinated gay civil rights pioneer Harvey Milk in 1978.
@lpeterp/Bluesky
@FPWellman/X
@bobsbeatgmail.com5/Threads