Gingrich Reportedly Tells Gay Iowan Voter He's Better Off Supporting Obama

Republican presidential contender Newt Gingrich has had a rough couple of weeks. He's come under fire for having an alleged progressive record and his own half-sister, a lesbian, has said she plans to support President Barack Obama's re-election campaign -- even if it means going against her own blood. Now, Gingrich is making headlines after he reportedly told an Iowan man that he'd be better off supporting Obama.

Gingrich, who was campaigning in Oskaloosa, Iowa, allegedly made this assertion to Scott Arnold, an associate professor of writing at William Penn University. This response reportedly came after Arnold asked Gingrich how he planned to engage with gay Americans, should he assume the presidency.

In the past, Gingrich has made his opposition to homosexuality known. “I believe that marriage is between a man and woman. It has been for all of recorded history and I think this is a temporary aberration that will dissipate," he said back in September. "I think that it is just fundamentally goes against everything we know."

The New York Daily News has more about Gingrich's gay marriage views:

Earlier this month, he told the conservative Christian Family Leader organization that, if elected, he would “oppose any judicial, bureaucratic or legislative effort to define marriage in any manner other than as between one man and one woman."

“When you ask somebody a question and you expect them to support all Americans and have everyone’s general interest...It’s a little bit frustrating and disheartening when you’re told to support the other side," Arnold explains. "That he doesn’t’ need your support."

According to the Des Moines Register, Arnold, who is a gay Democrat, says that he went to the event with an open mind. After seeing Gingrich's past comments about gays, he was curious to know how, as president, the GOP contender would represent him. Arnold said the candidate's past statements don't "inspire hope at all."

Considering Gingrich's own sister's pledge to support his rival, should he secure the nomination, as well as his own words on same-sex unions, it's safe to say he won't be getting America's "gay vote."

(H/T: National Journal)