—Said in reaction to the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell”: “It is a tragic day for our nation when legitimizing sodomy is preferred over the morale and combat-readiness of America’s military. Sadly, those who voted to repeal DADT don’t know that although they won this battle, they have lost the war. The movement to support our Armed Forces is more powerful than ever and will continue to build strength until we win. This cowardly political betrayal of America’s service men and women will not be forgotten on Election Day. U.S. Senator Bill Nelson’s corrupt vote to repeal DADT attacked our troops and dishonored our nation’s founders. Senator Nelson is now partying and laughing now with the extremist fringe group he pandered to, but the people of Florida will remind him of his unfitness to be their senator should he have the temerity to ask them for their vote in the 2012 elections.”

—Defended a local politician’s refusal to sign a pride proclamation by attacking LGBTQ people as “bigoted extremists” with a “true agenda of hate, bigotry, intolerance and discrimination.”

—In a heinous comment in which he expressed hope that controversy surrounding the Boy Scouts might help his organization repeal a nondiscrimination ordinance, Verdugo declared, “the Boy Scouts is our Matthew Shepard.”