Marco Rubio hammered over 'appalling bigotry' aimed at U.S. military official

Sen. Marco Rubio (R - FL) is being called out for an apparently homophobic Twitter post attacking a Navy Judge Advocate General’s Corps officer, with his comments being called "juvenile."

According to a report from MSNBC's Michael A. Cohen, the Florida Republican felt compelled to retweet a clip of Lt. j.g. Audrey Knutson, who identifies as nonbinary', talking about the "opportunity to read a poem at an LGBTQ spoken word night while stationed on an aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford."

In the clip, Knutson explained, "My grandfather served in the Navy in World War II. He was on board the USS Hornet. And he — it means a lot for me to be able to join the Navy, because he was a gay man in the Navy, and he had a really difficult service. So for me to join as nonbinary is really powerful to me and something that I’m certainly proud of.”

That led Rubio to sneer, "While China prepares for war this is what they have our @USNavy focused on.”

According to Cohen, "In relying on the most juvenile of gay stereotypes, Rubio is suggesting that gay, trans or nonbinary service members are simply not tough enough to fight America’s wars, especially against a rising power like China."

Cohen added, "It’s not every day you see a senator denigrating a member of the U.S. military, and it’s far from clear how an LGBTQ spoken word night undermines America’s ability to 'prepare for war.' Indeed, one might argue that building camaraderie and acceptance in a diverse institution like the military is essential to enhancing unit cohesion."

Writing that Rubio is showing his "true and ugly colors," the MSNBC analyst concluded, "It’s the insidious and escalating ways Republicans continue to devalue and denigrate the LGBTQ community — and treat its members as somehow lesser Americans — that should be of even greater concern. And it should be called out for what it is — blatant and appalling bigotry."