Right-wing provocateur Ben Shapiro was soundly mocked by Star Wars legend Mark Hamill after Shapiro laughed off what he referred to as Democratic President Joe Biden's "equity agenda."
Oddly, Shapiro went on to claim during an episode of The Ben Shapiro Show that Biden wants to put LGBTQ+ astronauts on the moon, describing the possibility as something that "sounds like a bad pornography."
Shapiro's remarks came shortly after the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced it would reschedule the launch of its next-generation megarocket Artemis 1 to Saturday, September 3. The launch had been postponed due to inclement weather as well as the discovery by NASA engineers of a temperature problem with one of the booster's core-stage engines.
You can hear what Shapiro said in the video below.
\u201cBen Shapiro mocks the notion of queer astronauts going to the moon: "Lesbians on the moon. This is what we need. It sounds like a bad pornography"\u201d— Jason Campbell (@Jason Campbell) 1661877985
Shapiro said:
"The equity agenda was promised, by the way. Joe Biden promised to use every area of his administration, down to the stupidest parts."
"So this week, Artemis 1, which is supposed to be setting the stage for the attempt to reach the moon again, the Artemis 1 launch was canceled, again, and was scrubbed after an engine issue."
"According to CNN, 'the launch of NASA's historic Artemis 1 moon mission was postponed after the engineering team was unable to work through an issue with one of the rocket's four engines.'"
"Hey, but the real important thing is that when we do go through with it, we have a lesbian on the moon. Lesbians on the moon! This is what we need! It sounds like bad pornography."
Shapiro went on to mock Vice President Kamala Harris, who had earlier remarked the "key to space exploration" is to send a diverse group of people. He went on to say Harris was implying "the most qualified people" would not be sent on the Artemis 1 mission.
Hamill responded shortly afterward, asking Shapiro to "please define what sounds like good pornography to you."
\u201cTo be perfectly clear, please define what sounds like good pornography to you.\u201d— Mark Hamill (@Mark Hamill) 1661900603
This statement of course prompted the online community to ponder what kind of pornography Shapiro is actually into.
The results were hilarious.
\u201cEveryone knows he only checks out lemur on giant squid porn in 4k :P\u201d— MindParadox (@MindParadox) 1661999242
\u201cIf Ben references using a Lightsaber in any way, I\u2019m outa here.\u201d— \ud83c\udf3bMark Irish#19 (@\ud83c\udf3bMark Irish#19) 1661910781
\u201cOne where there is absolutely NO WAP involved\u201d— Brandon Testa (@Brandon Testa) 1661920445
\u201cThe one where he and is wife go to sleep in separate beds and fall asleep in a medically prescribed daze only to wake up and do it all over again ad nauseum\u201d— Baron Cutler (@Baron Cutler) 1661962046
\u201cI wouldn\u2019t doubt he knows bad pornography. I\u2019m sure he\u2019s read his own book.\u201d— Tristan (@Tristan) 1661953225
\u201cHe knows how "Bad pornography" sounds like, cause he was in one. Called "Party of One". \ud83d\udca9\ud83d\udca9\ud83d\udca9\u201d— Anne Brown (@Anne Brown) 1661954833
\u201cDo not ask a question you don't want to know the answer to.\u201d— Devil23 \ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\uddf8 (@Devil23 \ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\uddf8) 1661985053
\u201cTwo men on the Moon i suppose, but he's not gonna admit it\u201d— sentimentai | 86' baby! (@sentimentai | 86' baby!) 1661939468
Hamill and Shapiro have sparred online before.
Hamill mocked Shapiro earlier this year after Shapiro claimed Hamill was trying to "indoctrinate" children into "gender and sexual ideology" after Hamill posted a tweet consisting of a rainbow emoji and the word “gay” 69 times.
The two men had butted heads over Florida's controversial "Don't Say Gay" law, which aims to “reinforce the fundamental right of parents to make decisions regarding the upbringing and control of their children in a specified manner.”
The law prohibits “a school district from encouraging classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in primary grade levels or in a specified manner” and authorizes parents to “bring an action against a school district to obtain a declaratory judgment that a school district procedure or practice violates certain provisions of law.”
Hamill is one of multiple high profile figures—including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and his husband educator Chasten Buttigieg—who have criticized the legislation for imperiing the lives of LGBTQ+ youth.