Ben Shapiro pressed on homosexuality during Judiciary hearing

Ben Shapiro clashed with Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) during a Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, where Shapiro testified about an alleged conspiracy to silence conservative media outlets.

The Republican-led committee had earlier released a report accusing the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) of planning to censor conservative content, including from The Daily Wire.

Swalwell tried to shift the focus from GARM to Shapiro’s religious and political beliefs. He questioned the Daily Wire co-founder about his support for Project 2025, a set of proposed presidential transition policies by the Heritage Foundation. “Mr. Shapiro, thank you for joining us today. I think it is important that you’re here as one of the leading conservative voices in the country,” Swalwell began.

Shapiro replied, “I think like President Trump, I haven’t looked all that deeply into Project 2025. But it seems that Democrats on this committee think that — sort of like Peter Pan and Tinkerbell — if they say Project 2025 enough, their presidential candidate becomes alive again.”

Swalwell further pressed the conservative political commentator on various issues, including immigration, abortion pills, and same-sex marriage. Shapiro responded briefly and noted, “I’m not sure why I’m testifying on immigration policy at this point.”

Swalwell also presented a poster with a 2018 quote of Shapiro calling homosexual activity “a sin.” Shapiro replied, “Yes, I’m a religious Jew. You found me out. I agree with me. Yes, that’s true.”

In his opening statement, Shapiro criticised GARM, claiming it acts as a cartel to suppress conservative voices. “GARM purportedly sets ‘brand safety’ standards,” he said. “In reality, GARM acts as a cartel. Its members account for 90 percent of ad spending in the United States — almost $1 trillion. If you’re not getting ad dollars from GARM members, it’s nearly impossible to run an ad-based business.”