After a video went viral on Thursday that showed Missouri Senator Mike Moon saying he supported marriage for kids as young as 12, the Ash Grove Republican has responded, saying his comments were taken out of context.
The video circulating Twitter featured Representative Peter Merideth (D-St. Louis) questioning Moon on his 2018 vote against a bill that would raise the legal age of marriage. In the video, Moon asks Merideth if he knows anyone who got married at age 12. When Merideth responds, "I don't need to," Moon tells him, "I do — and guess what? They're still married."
After dozens of accusations on Twitter of Moon being in favor of adults marrying children, he explained his perspective in a video press conference titled "Setting the Record Straight," which was sent to KMOX in lieu of an interview or conversation with the Senator. He said that he voted against raising the marriage age because of two 12-year-olds he knew who had married each other.
"Let me set the record straight: I do not support adults marrying minors," Moon said in the video. He continued: "As I contemplated the bill, I was reminded of a couple I had met years before. When this couple was in their teens — actually, pre-teens — they took actions that resulted in the girl becoming pregnant. The youngsters' parents decided to allow the children to marry. They weren't forced. However, because they were not mature and could not provide for themselves, they grew up with their families in different states."
Moon continued on to say that as the children got older, they started living together and are still married together. Because the bill to raise the marriage age had no allowances for these extreme exceptions, he said, he voted against it.
Moon also joined KMOX's sister station 97.1 FM to share his perspective further. He said that Merideth — who he wouldn't name — "set a trap" and said of the Democratic legislator, "He's intelligent, but I don't think he's very smart."
Watch his full statement below:
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