Rick Perry’s Totally, Completely Offensive Campaign Ad is Totally, Completely Offensive

Rick Perry released a new campaign ad yesterday that’s so unreal I honestly thought it was a spoof the first two times I saw it. I actually didn’t believe it was legit until I went to Perry’s homepage myself. Even then I still sort of thought that news would come out that this some some sort of crazy hoax and someone had hacked into some account of Perry’s campaign office.

I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a Christian, but you don’t need to be in the pew every Sunday to know there’s something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military but our kids can’t openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school.

As President, I’ll end Obama’s war on religion. And I’ll fight against liberal attacks on our religious heritage. Faith made America strong. It can make her strong again.

I’m Rick Perry and I approve this message.

As it turns out, this ad was made against the advice of Perry’s (closeted until now) gay top pollster, Tony Fabrizio. Fabrizio is Perry’s cheif strategist and even he, reportedly, called the ad “nuts.” Gay conservative group GOProud’s Jimmy LaSalvia was so outraged about the ad, that he outed Fabrizio in a tweet. GOProud Board Chair, Chris Barron, followed this up by tweeting at a follower, “Rick Perry’s pollster & strategist is a gay guy. Totally disgusting.”

I think it makes perfect sense that Perry went against his chief strategist on this one. The whole ad just reeks of bizarre last minute desperation. I feel like this was an improperly finished Mad Lib. Something like this:

Look I filled a few in:

GUESS WHICH ONE IS A JOKE!

I’m not the only one who thought that Perry’s ad was worthy of ridicule. The ad received both a spoof of “rejected ad ideas” in the Huffington Post as well as a tumblr of Perry’s (fake) unpopular decisions. More traditionally reputable news sources also felt comfortable calling it a “fail” and “flop”, as well as noting that it has “more than 137,000 dislikes to just over 3,000 likes” on YouTube. If this is Perry’s attempt at getting ahead in Iowa before the debate — and it is — he might want to take note that America’s votes don’t seem to be responding well to it so far.

Before you go! Autostraddle runs on the reader support of our AF+ Members. If this article meant something to you today — if it informed you or made you smile or feel seen, will you consider joining AF and supporting the people who make this queer media site possible?

Join AF+!
Related:

Lizz

Lizz is a consumer, lover and writer of all things pop culture and the Fashion/Style Editor at Autostraddle.com. She is also full time medical student at Brown University in Providence, RI. You can find her on the twitter, the tumblr or even on the instagram.

Lizz has written 261 articles for us.

79 Comments

  5. I logged on just to post the Cracked Spoof which was so good. Only to find it’s been removed as a violation of YouTube’s policy on sexual content. WTF. EVERYTHING IS WRONG WITH EVERYTHING.

  6. this makes me want to makeout with/ gay-marry a hot sailor lady on the foredeck of the USS Intrepid. rick fucking perry

  7. The only good part about that ad is how many people dislike it vs like it. 6 figures for dislikes and 4 for likes. Rick Perry hunts at a place called “Ni**er head” and now this asinine ad. Perry actually getting nominated would be a good thing because he couldn’t pull a Bush. Which is use Christianity to get the black vote.

  8. Lizz, when we inevitably get married, can we ask Rick Perry to officiate? That seems like something he might be interested in, idk.

  9. I just checked his video on youtube that the number has gone up. 4,000 people like while 250,000 dislike. It is this need to appeal to such an unreasonable part of society that does more damage than any campaign done by a democrat. And lets face it the dems are so lilly livered that they wouldnt have attacked his idiotic statements anyway. Blame it on the economy. It brings out the worst and best in us. Guess what it has done to him/ republican supporters. (i have to rethink that though, I dont think i would have liked him if i was rolling in crazy amounts of mulla, his an ass)

    • I definitely don’t disagree that it’s hateful, but it shouldn’t be taken down. People need to see it.

      • no,why? why do people need to see this?
        my day would have been better without this video.

        I fucking love reading autostraddle so any post even one on anti-gay propaganda gets me exited
        the thing is that I sometimes forget that…well it’s a post on anti-gay propaganda so this probably means that there might be ANTI-GAY PROPAGANDA out there. and that sucks.

        • People need to see this ad because, as the dislike to like ratio shows, people are not responding favorable to this ad. Semi-rational people who aren’t particularly familiar with politics, but insist on voting anyway, might see this ad, realize the man is batshit, and vote against him because of it. This ad is so completely asinine that it’s basically a win for his opponents.

  13. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a gay lady, but you don’t need to be at the vegan bakery down the road every day to know there’s something wrong in this country when old men are moving very slowly in some kind of fuzzy nature setting but our kids can’t tell him to stfu or learn about evolution in school.

    WTF Rick FUCKING Perry

  14. Go watch the second city parody of this (I can’t link to it because I’m on my phone)

    I’m a godless heathen and I approve this message is my new catchphrase

  15. Not all Republicans are conservatives, nor are like this douche. I align myself with Republican fiscal views, but certainly not the conservative social agenda.

    I’m fed up with not only the far right, but also the far left.

    I am at a loss for words thinking about the stupidity of the people leading our government.

    I am embarrassed to be registered as a Republican.

    • republican fiscal views? like spending trillions of dollars on blowing up cities in the middle east, while slashing funds for schools?

      i’m always skeptical of the fiscal conservatism argument. it seems like a cop-out. usually it means “more tax cuts for me, fewer public services for everybody else.”

      • Exactly, I’ve never understood that either. It’s basically saying you support public services and helping people in need but you don’t want any public or taxpayer money to go to those causes. Well, um, that doesn’t sound very supportive to me.

  16. This guy graduated from my school with a 2.5 (the minimum to commission in the Air Force). As loyal as we are to Texas A&M, there is quite an opposition to this guy. I sometimes hate the people that “represent” me from Texas.

  17. Liz, those mad-libs up there are only one of the reasons why you’re my favorite.

    Also oh god, why do I read the comments on TowelRoad ever? It just sucks that someone was outed on TWITTER over this.

  19. Love the Huff post article… exactly what I was thinking…

    Ugh… Perry…. I really hate that I live in Texas right now.

  20. There’s so many things I find totally disgusting about this.
    I think it’s horrifying that so many people seem unable to distinguish between religion and a certain set of conservative social values.
    I think it’s terrifying how blatantly he ignores separation of church and state.
    I wonder what world he’s living in that he thinks kids can’t celebrate Christmas openly.
    And I know queer Republicans, and I know it doesn’t have to be an oxymoron, but I can’t believe that a gay man would actually work for Rick Perry.

    • I’m from Texas and just got into an argument over seperation of church and state with my mother. I was told I live a sad life and that I’m “fucked in the head” because I don’t agree with her.
      Here in Texas there are some restrictions but in my opinion if kids are still passing out candy canes, decorating with red and green, and discussing reindeers it sounds like Christmas to me. I challenged my mom about why can’t people of other religions pray without discrimination but yet we want to give special previlage to other religions. I also mentioned that is why private schools exist and she really got angry… Yeah I swear if she were to vote for Rick Perry I might jump off a bridge.

    • mad libs are as awesome as Rick Perry is abominable!! they’re how I learned what the parts of speech are when I was a kid.

  22. Does the army waging Obama’s “war on religion” also have a DADT policy, because I never heard of it until just this moment.

  24. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a gay lady. But you don’t need to be banging chicks every Sunday to know there’s something wrong in this country when any middle-aged white dude can bash gay service members and demolish the separation of church and state in a public forum but our kids can’t be protected from bullying in their schools or bigotry in their presidential hopefuls.

    • Dear Rick Perry,

      I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a fan of classical music. But you don’t need to go to music history class every day to know that the music playing in the background of your anti-gay ad was composed by Aaron Copland, a gay Jewish man.

      Cheers!
      – A proud gay service member (US Navy)

      P.S. — rockin’ that jacket coat.

  26. I totally thought this was a joke too. it’s pretty disgusting. but what really upsets me about this whole situation is actually how the GOProud guy reacted towards Rick Perry’s gay pollster. I hate it when gay people use words like ‘faggot’ in a negative way. reclaiming words is great, but personally, I would never use a word like ‘dyke’ unless it was in a positive or just matter-of-fact type sentence.

  27. Totally just got into an argument with my mother about religion because of this and I’m pretty sure she thinks I’m some devil creature because I asked why should Catholics and Christians be allowed to pray and Muslims be discriminating for it? Then she went on how my life is so depressingly sad and I’m “fucked” in the head because I don’t care to show up at church and be judged. Yeah Rick Perry can go to hell and I even had friends reposting it on facebook and one friend from Czech Republic reposted it talking about how disgusting Rick Perry is for what he said.

  30. Dear Rick Perry,

    I’m a ladygay so we’re not seeing eye to eye here. But you know what? That’s ok, because we both know you’re not going to win (I know you know it in your heart of grinch hearts). Can you do me a favor though? Just one, and I promise it’s not gay.

    Cou you please one up Herman Cain and quote the Digimon Movie when you step down from the Presidential Race? If not, then I also suggest Darkwing Duck or Spongebob. I promise, it’ll really end your campaign on a high note. No one will ever forget you.

    Sincerely

    Ash

  31. There are so many things wrong with this video (factually, morally) I don’t even know where to begin.

    But on the plus side: Mad Libs!

  36. That ad is just so disgusting….. I can’t believe he thought he would get more votes with it. I’m from Texas, and rumor has it that Perry has had some gay affairs. Wouldn’t surprise me if he was some self-hating closet case

  40. i really can’t believe he did this, and considering that at school we have to be quiet for the ” moment of silence” it’s the same thing minus the name, obviously he doesn’t believe in the separation of church and state, but he’ll learn the difference when he’s sitting at church and not in the white house.

  41. “You do not need to be a Pureblood to know there is something wrong with the Wizarding World when Mudbloods can live among the worthy as equals, but our own children cannot openly practise the Dark Arts.”
    -Lord Perrymort
    http://imgur.com/zVNBn

    Ten points to Gryffindor for whoever made this.

  43. In a struggling economy and a volatile global political climate, Rick Perry wants to focus on gay soldiers and the ‘war on Christmas’.

    Man’s got his priorities straight. Out of his ass.

  45. The jacket he is wearing in the ad is the same one Heath Ledger wore in Brokeback Mountain. I’m just saying…that’s out there.

  46. the scary thing is that not too long ago someone this dumb was elected to be president…twice. i’m tired of stupid conservatives blaming all the ills of this country on gay people, particularly when they need a political boost.

    and for all the folks at GOProud, why are are they suprised? they brought it on themselves for working with republicans in the first place. this party has historically used hatred and prejudice toward one minority group or another to rile up their lunkhead, ignorant base. they will simultaneously use a gay vote and work against gay civil rights at the same time. they blatantly did it in 2004. why is their duplicity and manipulation shocking?

  48. Tell them to take that cross and shove it where the sun don’t shine and pay their taxes along the way before they take that cross down forever with its final station; extinction.
    The Vatican basically supported Hitler and religion is responsible for more corruption and violence in the world. Pope Ratzinger was involved in the Nazi youth. The Pope with his blatant witchcraft related to the bible and its hateful beliefs; tries to rule with extreme prejudice against a world … that may fall victim to religions’ absolute evil. Many theologians state quite correctly that the birth; crucifixion; resurrection and other elements of christianity actually didn’t even happen! The pope is running a bigger fraud than Madoff’s $20 billion ripoff. Today’s evangelical extremists are like the nazis who cast others into ovens & are actually supremacists – who practice their bogus hocus pocus – and are trying to suppress and deprive others of their happiness and their legal rights in an open and proud society.

  49. There is no scientific evidence to prove any of the cross related bogus elements of christianity and other religions. Our early human ancestors; on this earth … go back more than 6 million years … 5,996,000 years before the Greeks, Romans and the Jews. Christianity is basically a 2012 year old fictional cult.
    In the year 300 AD when Emperor Constantine, who to some was the first pope; went on to fabricate & market Christianity – a fantasy – which turned out to be one of the most hateful & evil concoctions ever perpetrated on the world.

    The evil writings in Leviticus 18:22 … against gays – depict: “P” … “priestly rules” & expanded by the pope; homophobes and religious frauds … to attack the gay community and never meant to apply to the public — but to priests. Leviticus was written long after Moses — 600BC.

    The pope and churches fully aware that Leviticus 18:22 applies to priests only … refuse to remove this stigma … maliciously persecuting gays. Kids bullied into suicide …! Being black or left-handed or being gay is just as natural.

Comments are closed.