Colorado GOP calls for LGBTQ+ flags to be burned at start of Pride Month

• Its chairperson, Dave Williams, a former state representative, is running for Congress in Colorado's 5th Congressional District, which includes the site of a 2022 anti-LGBTQ+-motivated mass shooting that left five people dead and over two dozen injured.

What they're saying: "Burn all the #pride flags this June," the Colorado GOP said on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday.

• In addition to that post, the Colorado GOP reposted other homophobic and transphobic content, including a pastor describing Pride Month as "demonic."
• Among the many gay slurs in Williams' fundraising email was an image reading "God Hates Flags," an allusion to the Westboro Baptist Church's infamous gay slur.

Zoom in: Williams' has been endorsed by former President Trump.

• His opponent in the Republican primary, former AFP strategist Jeff Crank, was endorsed by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and several other House GOP leaders.

The big picture: Republican Valdamar Archuleta, the head of the Colorado Log Cabin Republicans and a candidate for the 1st Congressional District race, denounced the Colorado GOP's anti-LGBTQ+ attacks on Tuesday.

• Archuleta, who is gay, told Colorado Public Radio it marked the second year in a row the Colorado GOP has attacked Pride Month.
• He also declined the Republican GOP's endorsement after speaking with gay and straight Republicans, who considered the party's message "disgusting and offensive," he told Colorado Politics.

Go deeper: Why Florida is America's least gay-friendly state