During an radio appearance Thursday, presidential candidate and former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) compared Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis to civil rights hero Martin Luther King Jr., saying he was “very proud” of Davis for going to jail for her beliefs.
On New York’s AM970 The Answer, Santorum said he knew “this assault of people of faith is going to happen” after the U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage came down, in an interview first flagged by BuzzFeed’s Andrew Kaczynski.
“Martin Luther King went to jail because he didn’t follow the law. There’s a long precedent in America from people saying, ‘You know the law has to change to accommodate what is the right thing to do, in their own moral judgment,'” Santorum said.
He called the ruling that made gay marriage the law of the land an “abuse” by the Supreme Court and said “we shouldn’t be in this position” where a clerk is faced with either violating her religious beliefs or going to jail.
“I can tell you I’m very proud of the fact that she stood up for those convictions and she should stood up for what I believe,” Santorum said. “This shouldn’t be a requirement in this country that you have to cooperate with something that in many religions is a grave sin in order to hold a job.”
Listen to Santorum’s full appearance, via BuzzfeedAndrew on Soundcloud:
