On Friday, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards asked Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump not to come visit his flood-ravaged state for “a photo-opportunity” so that law enforcement and other emergency services personnel could focus on assisting residents.

Trump ignored Gov. Edwards’ pleas and visited his state anyways, pulling dozens of law enforcement personnel off their regular duties to provide security for Trump’s visit.

During his tour of the flood-ravaged region, Trump and Mike Pence met a group of volunteers at a Baptist church, headed by the notorious leader of the Family Research Council (FRC), Tony Perkins. The FRC has been labeled an anti-LGBT hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Perkins, who has claimed that God uses natural disasters such as hurricanes and flooding to punish people for sinning (in particular homosexuals and their supporters), had his own home destroyed by the Lord Almighty. The hate group leader says he was forced to escape his destroyed home by canoe.

Perkins claims that God sent this deadly flood not to punish the gays but rather “as an incredible, encouraging spiritual exercise to take you to the next level in your walk with an almighty and gracious God who does all things well.” In fact, he urges Christians to rejoice that God considers them “worthy of suffering for his sake.”

Perkins thanked Trump for coming to visit him, then he blasted President Obama for “being too busy to visit because he was on vacation.”

Trump added: “The president says he doesn’t want to come, he is trying to get out of a golf game.”

Obama is scheduled to travel to Louisiana Tuesday to observe the damage from the historic flooding.

“While in Martha’s Vineyard, the President has received updates on the situation in Louisiana, including from the DHS Secretary and the FEMA Administrator, who took separate trips there,” read a White House statement released Friday. “The President today directed his team to coordinate with Louisiana officials to determine an appropriate time for him to visit, and together they have determined that the President will visit Baton Rouge, Louisiana on Tuesday, Aug. 23.”

Perkins also told Trump that “the big issue” with the flooding is “religious freedom,” because the government is attempting to diminish the role of churches that provide disaster relief, according to NCRM.

Perkins’ Greenwell Springs Baptist Church is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, which believes that being LGBT is a sin, reports the Advocate.

The church also requires all employees and volunteers to agree to a Statement of Marriage and Family, which reads in part: “We believe that any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pornography or any attempt to change one’s sex, or disagreement with one’s biological sex, is sinful and offensive to God.”

Trump has reportedly donated $100,000 to Perkins’ anti-gay church group, which will hopefully go towards Louisiana residents affected by the disastrous flooding.

Trump donated $100k to a La. church helping w/ flood relief effort, along w/ truck of supplies he helped unload Friday, per his spokeswoman — Ashley Killough (@KilloughCNN) August 21, 2016

The church is Greenwell Springs Baptist Church, which Trump visited Friday and where Tony Perkins is interim pastor https://t.co/iw9dbipEdF — Ashley Killough (@KilloughCNN) August 21, 2016

When Trump was mocked for misquoting a Bible verse in a speech earlier this year, he revealed the speech had been co-written by Tony Perkins.

“Tony Perkins wrote that out for me… Tony Perkins is a very, very good guy,” Trump said. “He actually wrote out the Two, he wrote out the number ‘Two Corinthians’. I took exactly what Tony said, and thought, Tony has to know better than anybody.”

Here’s just a small taste of the type of vile hatred Perkins has spewed against the LGBT community. Via Right Wing Watch:



Check out the full list here.