Former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court and current candidate for the same position Roy Moore has come under fire for recent comments he made regarding same-sex marriage.

According to an al.com article, Moore said to a group of conservative activists gathered in Fort Payne, Ala., on Oct. 6, “same-sex marriage will be the ultimate destruction of our country because it destroys the very foundation upon which this nation is based.”

In a telephone interview, Moore stood by his controversial comments and defended his appearance at a Tea Party rally.

“I didn’t say anything that’s outside the law,” Moore said. “I said that same-sex marriage is against the law. That’s what a judge has to say. It is either OK by the law or it is not OK by the law.”

Moore went on to say same-sex marriage violates the Alabama constitution and the federal Defense Of Marriage Act, passed in 1996.

Members of The University of Alabama’s pro-LGBTQ rights community were not pleased with Moore’s comments.

“I personally find Mr. Moore’s statements on same-sex marriage to be ludicrous and incredibly offensive,” Noah Cannon, president of Spectrum, said. “He is using tired and faulty rhetoric to further his own homophobia. I personally feel this brand of myopic theocracy has no place in our judicial system.”

Moore said his statements were based on precedent and settled state and federal law. When asked specifically how same sex-marriage would destroy the “very foundation upon which this nation is based” as he claimed in his speech, Moore offered up an answer based on family life.

“That’s because the foundation of our country is founded on families, homes where man and woman are recognized as the parents of children,” Moore said. “It’s an institution, which the courts have no authority over especially when it violates the law.”

Moore rebutted further criticism of his view on the issue by saying that if you just rule according to your feelings and not according to the law, you destroy the very foundation of what being a judge is all about.

“Basically if you destroy the Constitution, your country would fall,” Moore said. “If you destroy all the laws that you’re under, you’re country would fall, it would become a different place.”

Moore’s Democratic opponent, Circuit Court Judge Robert Vance could not be reached for comment by press time.

Bradley Davidson, the executive director of the Alabama Democratic Party, felt Moore’s comments were out of place considering the next Chief Justice could potentially hear a case on the matter of same-sex marriage. He also said he understood Moore’s campaign strategy of speaking to members of the Tea Party.

“The Tea Party is obviously a part of the Republican Party; they’re an active subset of the conservative movement,” Davidson said. “If you’re running as a partisan judge as a Republican, then those are some of your potential voters so I would understand why he would speak to them.”

Lauren Jacobs, vice president of Spectrum, said she was not personally comfortable with Moore in office.

“When people say things like this and young LGBTQ people who are listening are lead to believe that there is something wrong with them, that they don’t deserve rights, that they won’t be treated as full and equal citizens, and that they have no other options for being a full member of our society, that to me is what is truly destructive and uncomfortable,” Jacobs said. “I would like to see politicians consider the weight of the effects their statements may have on young Alabamians watching them.”

In the interview, Moore claimed that President Barack Obama is disregarding the law of Congress with the 2011 Justice Department decision that the federal government will not defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court.

“It’s not the job of a president to overturn laws passed by Congress that he doesn’t like,” Moore said. “In fact, if you want to get very specific, you go back and see where Barack Obama willy-nilly violates the law and says he has a right to do so. So if he can’t follow the law passed by Congress, then he should resign or be impeached.”