WASHINGTON, Dec. 19, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Former Presidential Candidate Gary Bauer noted that critics of Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson "want free speech for themselves, and silence for everyone else."

In the midst of the controversy over an interview Robertson gave in which he supported traditional marriage, Bauer, the president of American Values, made the following statement:

"The attempt by gay rights groups and A&E to censor Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson is outrageous.  This is another example of the well-funded organized effort in America to silence anyone who dares to express the Judeo/Christian worldview on human sexuality.  Phil Robertson's critics are intolerant, pure and simple.  They want to decide what can be said in the public square and what can be taught in places of worship.  A&E should be ashamed of themselves for bowing to these intolerant extremists."