Democrats attack Amy Coney Barrett for saying 'sexual preference,' but Biden used same term in May

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Hirono accuses Barrett of offensive use of term 'sexual preference'

Democrat Senator from Hawaii argues Supreme Court nominee would 'roll back' LGBTQ rights

Democratic lawmakers hammered Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett for her use of the term "sexual preference" to describe the LGBTQ community, but apparently the term isn't as outdated as some Democrats believe it is. 

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, scolded the Trump appointee for saying "sexual preference" earlier in the hearing while vowing to discriminate against the LGBTQ community on the subject of Justice Antonin Scalia's dissent of the 2015 landmark Obergefell v. Hodges case, which legalized same-sex marriage.

"Let me make clear, 'sexual preference' is an offensive and outdated term," Hirono said. "It is used by the anti-LGBTQ activists to suggest that sexual orientation is a choice. It is not. Sexual orientation is a key part of a person's identity... So if it is your view that sexual orientation is merely a 'preference,' as you noted, then the LGBTQ community should be rightly concerned whether you will uphold their constitutional right to marry."

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Barrett offered an apology for using the term, explaining that she didn't mean to use the term in the way Hirono had described it, but that didn't stop Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., from bringing it up. 

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"When you did use the term 'sexual preference' earlier today, rather than 'sexual orientation,' is there a difference, and what is it?" Booker asked. 

"Senator, I really- in using that word, I did not mean to imply that I think that, you know... that it is not an immutable characteristic, or that it’s solely a matter of preference," Barrett responded. "I honestly did not mean any offense, or to make any statement by that."

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"But by what you just said, you understand about that immutable characteristic. That in other words, that one’s sexuality is not a preference, it is who they are. Is that what you’re saying?" Booker followed.

"Senator, I’m saying I was not trying to make any comment on it," Barrett explained. "I fully respect all the rights of the LGBT community. Obergefell is an important precedent of the court. I reject any kind of discrimination on any sort of basis."

However, the Trump campaign fired back at the attacks, sharing a clip of Joe Biden using the "outdated" term back in May during a virtual campaign event. 

"America’s the only nation in the world that when we’ve gone through a major crisis, we’ve almost always been able to come get through it and come out stronger. I’m hopeful," Biden said. "I’m going to need you if we win. I’m going to need you to help this time rebuild the backbone of this country, the middle class, but this time bring everybody along regardless of color, sexual preference, their backgrounds, whether they have any … Just bring everybody along. We can do this. We can, and I think the country’s ready."

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The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.