Donald Trump has become the first president to address the conference of a recognised anti-LGBT hate group.
Trump addressed the Family Research Council's Values Voter Summit – classed as a ”hate group" – as he told the crowds their anti-LGBT views would ”no longer be silenced".
Among those in the crowd were white supremacists, far right activists and religious extremists who oppose the equality of LGBT people.
Arriving at the event, Trump said it was great ”to be among friends" as he declared: ”We are returning moral clarity to our view of the world."
”I am honoured and thrilled to be the first sitting president to address this gathering of friends, so many friends," Trump explained.
He added: ”I pledged that in a Trump administration, our heritage would be cherished, protected and defended like you have never seen before."
Trump praised a bombshell directive that gave the go-ahead for religious businesses to discriminate against LGBT people.
The ruling effectively permits anti-LGBT discrimination across the US.
He told the cheering crowds: ”To protect religious liberty, including protecting groups like this one, I signed a new executive action in a beautiful ceremony in the White House on our national day of prayer.
”Among many historic steps, the executive order followed through on one of my most important campaign promises, important to so many of you.
”To prevent the horrendous Johnson Amendment interfering with your First Amendment rights.
”We will not allow government workers to censor sermons or target our pastors, our ministers, our rabbis.
”These are the people we want to hear from and they're not going to be silenced any longer."
