Newtrality

From The Guardian's PassNotes, a moment with the darling of the South Carolina GOP presidential primary:

Name: Newt Gingrich.

Age: 70.

Appearance: Silver hair, clenched buttocks.

The Republican politician? And author and pundit. If you follow American current affairs …

Which of course I don't. … you'll also know him as a regular on CNN's debate show Crossfire. And he's in the news because of a gay kiss.

I thought he was married. You spend your whole life denying your feelings, then one day KABOOM! Not Gingrich, you idiot. The kiss was between Michael Sam, the first openly gay player in the NFL, and his boyfriend, Vito Cammisano. Sam had just been picked to play for the St Louis Rams, and the sports channel EPSN captured the celebrations.

Sweet! Not according to Don Jones of the Miami Dolphins, who tweeted "OMG" and "horrible", or former player Derrick Ward, who reckoned the kiss was "no bueno … u got little kids lookin".

Will no one ever think of the children? Jones later apologised, while Ward denied he was a homophobe and said he was facing death threats.

And where does Gingrich come in? He reckons gay people need to be more tolerant.

Come again? "You guys talk about how you want to be inclusive," he told his fellow panellists, "except of course, if somebody tweets this, then [they get] a death threat or [someone says], 'Let's send them off to sensitivity training.' It strikes me, that's repression, that's not inclusive."

Was anyone on Crossfire actually arguing in favour of death threats? Gingrich has a keenly developed ear for such things. After all, when gay rights groups lobbied for the dismissal of Mozilla chief executive Brendan Eich over his opposition to gay marriage, Gingrich denounced their "new fascism".

Hmm. Former NFL player Jamal Anderson, who was a guest on the show, wasn't convinced. "Is it repression to try to teach them to be understanding and open to other people?" he asked.

To which Newt replied? "Shouldn't we also be teaching people who are gay to be open and understanding of people who …"

Yes? "… hate them and think they should get back in the closet?"

Gingrich actually said that? Well, no. He was interrupted at that point. But what else could he have been about to say?

Do say: "I have no problem with homosexuality …"

Don't say: " … I just don't want it rammed down my throat."

Despite his rampant public homophobia, Gingrich was willing to knock back a drink with a gay reporter and his partner in Greenville, SC two years ago. But he insisted anything he said was off the record.