A law has been proposed in North Carolina to make it a crime to call former Governor Pat McCrory a homophobic a**hole.

Republican Governor Pat McCrory was booted out of office in November’s election after the state lost a string of big investment ventures, thanks to his decision to sign anti-LGBT law HB2, which voided all local ordinances protecting LGBT rights, banned transgender people from using their preferred bathroom, and permitted businesses to discriminate against LGBT people on the grounds of religious belief.

McCrory, who is rumoured to be in line for a job under President Trump, had an encounter with a group of protesters in Washington DC this week who chased him down the street shouting “shame on you” and “anti-gay bigot”.

Following the incident, a North Carolina lawmaker has proposed legislation that would make action against McCrory a crime.

State Republican Senator Dan Bishop said in a statement: “Lines are being crossed, and I have been holding my tongue.

“Yesterday, however, one of the growing series of spectacles caught my attention like no other. It was a video article posted on the Charlotte Observer’s website showing the immediate past governor of North Carolina chased by a chanting mob down a blind alley in Washington, DC on Saturday.

“When the General Assembly returns to Raleigh this week, I will introduce legislation to… make it a crime to threaten, intimidate, or retaliate against a present or former North Carolina official in the course of, or on account of, the performance of his or her duties.

“And I will also urge my colleagues to take other appropriate steps to guarantee the personal safety of Gov. McCrory by all necessary means… lines are being crossed.”