Presidential Candidate Joe Exotic Reveals Stance on Abortion, Guns, LGBTQ
announced his campaign on social media in 2023. The TV personality is serving a 21-year prison sentence following his conviction in 2019 on multiple charges, including two counts of hiring hit men to murder his Tiger King co-star, wildlife activist Carole Baskin.
He was also convicted of killing tigers and selling them across state lines.In an email exchange, Exotic told Newsweek from FMC Fort Worth prison in Texas about the challenges of campaigning from behind bars as he also shared his stance on a number of issues that have dominated the political landscape.With LGBTQ+ rights having been a major component in culture wars among Americans over the past year, Texas-raised Exotic shared that while he is openly gay himself, he doesn't believe that people should "force it in anyone's face.""As a gay man I don't agree with everything that the LGBTQ+ community is doing," Exotic, who shot to fame in 2020 on Netflix docuseries Tiger King, wrote. "It's like how to unite the Democrats and Republicans, there is a middle ground to everything."Exotic, who originally announced that he would run for president as a Libertarian before switching to the Democratic Party weeks later, then shared his views on abortion rights and the Second Amendment."You can have pro-choice and have the right to [bear] arms, but I am not going to let you have [three] abortions because you are lazy or a slob and can't put on a condom.
Just like I am not going to let you have a machine gun, but I will go along with one abortion as a mistake and let you have a handgun or rifle."Turning his issue back to LGBTQ+ people, Exotic said that if "you want to be transgender then pay for the surgery, the government is not going to.
And you can sleep with who you want but don't force it in anyone's face."He continued: "The pride parades with people in G-strings and such is not OK with me while little kids are in the crowd.
