Hillary Clinton had a special guest seated directly behind her at a rally in Kissimmee, Fla., on Monday. It was Seddique Mateen, father of Omar Mateen, the terrorist who killed 49 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando in June.
As it turns out, Mateen is a big fan of the Democratic nominee. “Hillary Clinton is good for United States versus Donald Trump, who has no solutions,” he said in an interview with NewsChannel 5. He even made a big yellow sign to express his enthusiasm.
Mateen didn’t say whether or not the Clinton campaign was aware that he was attending the rally. “It’s a Democratic party, so everyone can join,” he said, adding that he didn’t understand why people might be surprised by his presence at the event, located just a short drive from Orlando.
“Why should they be surprised? I love the United States, and I’ve been living here a long time,” Mateen said.
Seddique Mateen is an unusual character. Originally from Afghanistan, he hosted a bizarre YouTube talk show in which he criticized the United States and praised the Taliban. He was once a candidate for president of Afghanistan, and even visited Congress and the State Department to lobby the government to take a harder line against neighboring Pakistan.
Many suspected that Omar Mateen may have picked up his anti-gay views from his father after Seddique Mateen told CBS after the fatal shooting that “God will punish those involved in homosexuality…[it’s] not an issue that humans should deal with.”
Omar Mateen’s wife, Noor Salman, who reportedly knew about the planned attack and tried to talk her husband out of it, went missing after a brief stay at Mateen’s parents’ house.