Trump Reportedly Joked That Pence 'Wants To Hang' All Gays

President Donald Trump joked that Vice President Mike Pence “wants to hang” all gay people, according to a profile of Pence published in The New Yorker on Monday.

The article, entitled “The Danger of President Pence,” details various viewpoints held by the socially conservative vice president that clash with Trump’s. Two sources told the magazine that Trump has teased Pence about his positions on religion, abortion and the LGBTQ community.

“A longtime associate” of Trump and Pence was quoted in the article saying that the president likes to let his VP “know who’s boss” and that Trump asks people who stop by Pence’s office, “Did Mike make you pray?”

(Photo: Jonathan Ernst / Reuters)
(Photo: Jonathan Ernst / Reuters)

After a legal adviser told Trump and Pence that many states would probably legalize abortion if the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Trump was said to have turned to Pence:

‘You see?’ Trump asked Pence. ‘You’ve wasted all this time and energy on it, and it’s not going to end abortion anyway.’

When that meeting shifted to discuss gay rights, according to the article, Trump pointed to Pence and joked, “Don’t ask that guy — he wants to hang them all!”

Pence’s press secretary, Alyssa Farah, told Washington Blade reporter Chris Johnson that the New Yorker article was “filled with unsubstantiated, unsourced claims that are untrue and offensive.” It was unclear whether Farah’s statement specifically addressed Trump’s joke.

Pence’s views on equal rights have long stirred concern in the LGBTQ community. As Indiana governor, he signed his state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act in 2015, which essentially gave businesses the right to refuse to serve gay people. He has supported so-called gay conversion therapy and has been called “one of the most anti-LGBT politicians out there.

This piece has been updated to include comment from the vice president’s office.

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American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU): We will see him in court.

&ldquo;The ACLU fights every day to defend religious freedom, but religious freedom does not mean the right to discriminate against or harm others. If President Trump signs an executive order that attempts to provide a license to discriminate against women or LGBT people, we will see him in court.&rdquo; -- <i><a href="https://www.aclu.org/news/aclu-statement-reports-impending-religious-freedom-executive-order" target="_blank">ACLU Deputy Legal Director Louise Melling</a></i>

GLSEN: It is un-American to make anyone’s basic rights subject to the personal discretion of others.

&ldquo;This executive order does not increase freedom of religion &ndash; already protected by our Constitution &ndash; it creates a license to discriminate against LGBTQ people, women, Muslims, people of color, and other marginalized groups. For at-risk youth, this EO could undermine crucial safeguards against discrimination that create opportunities for them to survive and succeed. It is un-American to make anyone&rsquo;s basic rights subject to the personal discretion of others. It also goes against the rule of law and core principle of equal protection and would surely be challenged in the courts. Just 100 days ago, Donald Trump said he would not discriminate against LGBTQ people. Today, he&rsquo;s reportedly on the verge of handing all of our fellow Americans a personal license to ignore our rights." -- <i><a href="https://www.glsen.org/article/glsen-statement-reported-religious-exemptions-executive-order" target="_blank">GLSEN Executive Director, Dr. Eliza Byard</a></i>

Human Rights Campaign (HRC): By even considering this discriminatory order he has broken his promise.

&ldquo;Donald Trump&rsquo;s rumored unconstitutional action is nothing more than a license-to-discriminate order that puts millions of LGBTQ people at risk. There is no religious freedom crisis in America today, but there is a crisis of hate and discrimination. At a time when two-thirds of all LGBTQ people report having experienced discrimination, Donald Trump is making the problem worse by giving legal cover to perpetrators. By even considering this discriminatory order he has broken his promise to be a president for all Americans.&rdquo; -- <a href="http://www.hrc.org/blog/hrc-responds-to-rumored-license-to-discriminate-executive-order" target="_blank"><i>Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin</i></a>

National LGBTQ Task Force: It trashes the separation of church and state and aims to combine them.

&ldquo;This executive order will be a charter for widespread and divisive discrimination, potentially against LGBTQ people, women, Muslim communities, and other marginalized communities. It is designed to destroy lives and roll-back fundamental rights. It trashes the separation of church and state and aims to combine them. It will have an immediate and chilling impact on every aspect of people&rsquo;s lives, disproportionately impacting those who are low-income or otherwise marginalized. What will be shocking to millions of people of all faiths and secular people alike is that Trump radically twists freedom of, and freedom from, religion to justify this amoral action. In fact, the research shows that 61 percent of people of faith in America actually&nbsp;support&nbsp;LGBTQ inclusion and 59 percent of those are against religious exemptions." -- <a href="http://www.thetaskforce.org/breaking-trump-plans-to-sign-religious-exemption-executive-order-allowing-broad-discrimination/" target="_blank"><i>National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund Executive Director&nbsp;Rea Carey</i></a>

Center For American Progress: CAP sees this for what it is: a license to discriminate.

"If media reports are accurate, President Trump is&mdash;once again&mdash;on the verge of signing an executive order to sanction sweeping taxpayer-funded discrimination against LGBT people, women, and their families in blatant violation of Trump&rsquo;s promise to protect our LGBT citizens. If the executive order is anything like the draft leaked in February, it would give for-profit corporations free rein to discriminate, leading to LGBT people and women being fired from their jobs, evicted from their homes, or even denied medical care simply because of who they are. The Trump administration is attempting to disguise this attack in the language of religious liberty, but CAP sees this for what it is: a license to discriminate." -- <i><a href="https://www.americanprogress.org/press/statement/2017/05/02/431791/statement-planned-executive-order-sanction-taxpayer-funded-discrimination-lgbt-people-women-says-caps-winnie-stachelberg/" target="_blank">Executive Vice President for External Affairs at the Center for American Progress Winnie Stachelberg</a></i>

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.