Parliamentary candidate rants about ‘poof poof’ marriage and gay ‘poo games’
An Australian political party is facing yet another homophobia row, after it emerged that a Parliamentery candidate tweeted racist abuse and attacked “poof poof marriage”.
Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Party, which has a preferential voting alliance with the governing Liberal party in Western Australia’s elections, has faced a string of scandals over candidates with extreme views.
Joining the pile today is Richard Eldridge, a real estate agent and a One Nation candidate for a seat in the South Metropolitan region of Perth.
WA Today revealed a Twitter account under his name which had posted a string of homophobic and racist messages.
In a tweet from 2013 he wrote: “Gays [sic] marriage certificate could be called the poof proof certificate or the licker letter of law.
“You see when we consummate a marriage kids are generally born 9 mths later when gays consummate its [sic] just bum sex for enjoyment.”
He later referred to gay relationships as “poo games”.
Mr Eldridge also referred to Muslims as “towel heads” and made derogatory comments about indigenous Australian groups.
The account was swiftly deactivated after the report.
The candidate dismissed his comments as “locker room talk” – the same phrase used by US President Donald Trump after his infamous comments about sexually assaulting women for fun.
He said: “I don’t remember most of the tweets. One of them I do. But it was pretty much locker room talk.”
“I deactivated the account because I wasn’t running in 2013. It’s locker room talk, mate, that’s all it is. I didn’t want to offend anyone.”
The candidate did not apologise for comments about gay people, but said he wants to “work” with native Australians.
He said: I want to work with these people if I get elected and try to do some good with the Aboriginal people. My heart’s in the right place.”
The comments come after a feud about another One Nation candidate made it all the way to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
Michelle Meyers, a Legislative Assembly candidate for Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Party in Western Australia, made the news by claiming “Norwegian homosexuals” are behind a “mind control program” based on strategies “developed by the Soviets and then the Nazis”.
The candidate, pictured multiple times with party leader Pauline Hanson, claimed on social media that Nazi mind control is the reason why “even some Christians are being swayed by the gender industry’s pitch and push 4 same sex ‘marriage’ and acceptance of fake families”.
The Prime Minister laughed off questions about his party’s preferential alliance with One Nation after being asked about Meyers’ comments.
Last month the party was forced to drop a local candidate in Queensland after she claimed gay people are “abnormal” and need medical treatment.
However, party leader Pauline Hanson stood by another candidate who linked gay people to paedophiles.
