Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum gave a curious explanation for his opposition to gay marriage at a campaign stop on Monday at a Christian college in Iowa.
A recent graduate of the college compared gay marriage to interracial marriage and pressed Santorum on why it would be "a hit to faith and family in America." ABC News reported that the former Pennsylvania senator got agitated and started talking about the perils of gay sex:
Santorum then said that if same sex marriage was legalized then "their sexual activity" would be seen as "equal" to heterosexual relationships and it would be taught in schools.
"Really--wow--um okay, well let's see if we can have a discussion. We can flesh out some, well, let's look at what's going to be taught in our schools because now we have same sex couples being the same and their sexual activity being seen as equal and being affirmed by society as heterosexual couples and their activity," Santorum said.
The student disagreed with him, but Santorum stuck to his line of reasoning.
"I think you're wrong--okay, in fact you have to know you’re wrong, because if we say legally if this type of relationship is identical to other type relationships then of course more of it will be taught because this is what the law says," he said.
Santorum has previously said that allowing gay marriage will cause our country to "fall."
He is not the only GOP candidate to spar with voters over gay marriage. Michele Bachmann escalated a tense exchange with Iowa high school students on the topic, and Monday night she went silent after an eight-year-old boy confronted her about his gay mother. Newt Gingrich was glitter-bombed at his own book signing by a man telling him to "stop the hate."
Santorum has a long history of telling people how they should have sex. Here are some highlights:
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On Contraception
"It's not okay. It's a license to do things in a sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be."
<a href="http://thinkprogress.org/health/2011/10/19/348007/rick-santorum-pledges-to-defund-contraception-its-not-okay-its-a-license-to-do-things/" target="_hplink">Think Progress, 2011</a>
On The Definition Of Marriage
"Marriage is what marriage is. Marriage was around before government said what it was. It's like going out and saying, 'That tree is a car.' Well, the tree's not a car. A tree's a tree. Marriage is marriage."
"It's like handing up this and saying this glass of water is a glass of beer. Well you can call it a glass of beer, it's not a glass of beer, it's a glass of water. And water is what water is. Marriage is what marriage is."
"I can call this napkin a paper towel, but it is a napkin. Why? Because it is, what it is."
<a href="http://iowaindependent.com/60602/santorum-qa-marriage-for-gays-threatens-religious-freedom" target="_hplink">Iowa Independant, 2011</a>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fLbAFNbVSEE
http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2011/08/09/292121/santorum-marriage-is-like-water-not-beer/" target="_hplink">Think Progress, 2011</a>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U394HKpak1s" target="_hplink">MSNBC, 2011</a>
On Sex In The Military
"I -- I would say, any type of sexual activity has absolutely no place in the military. And the fact that they're making a point to include it as a provision within the military that we are going to recognize a group of people and give them a special privilege to -- to -- and removing 'don't ask, don't tell' I think tries to inject social policy into the military. And the military's job is to do one thing, and that is to defend our country."
<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/09/22/fox-news-google-gop-2012-presidential-debate/" target="_hplink">Fox News, 2011</a>
On Gays In The Military
"The problem is that sexual activity with people who you are in close quarters with who happen to be of the same sex is different than being open about your sexuality ... They're in close quarters, they live with people, they obviously shower with people."
<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/09/rick-santorum-gay-soldiers-shower-dadt_n_1002244.html" target="_hplink">HuffPost, 2011</a>
On Polygamy, Bigamy, Adultery..
"If the Supreme Court says that you have the right to consensual sex within your home, then you have the right to bigamy, you have the right to polygamy, you have the right to incest, you have the right to adultery. You have the right to anything."
<a href="http://articles.cnn.com/2003-04-22/politics/santorum.gays_1_statement-on-individual-lifestyles-senator-santorum-bigamy-and-adultery?_s=PM:ALLPOLITICS" target="_hplink">Associated Press, 2003</a>
On The Difference Between Being Black And Being Gay
"You are black by the color of your skin. You are not homosexual, necessarily -- obviously, by the color of your skin. [...] The idea that being black and being gay is the same is simply not true..."
<a href="http://politics.foxnews.mobi/quickPage.html?page=23681&content=58208053&pageNum=-1" target="_hplink">Fox News, 2011</a>
On Candidates' Sex Lives
"When you look at someone to determine whether they'd be the right person for public office, look at who they lay down with at night and what they believe in."
<a href="http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/10/rick-santorum-when-selecting-candidate-look-at-who-they-lay-down-with-at-night.php" target="_hplink">Talking Points Memo, 2011</a>
On 'Man On Dog'
"In every society, the definition of marriage has not ever to my knowledge included homosexuality. That's not to pick on homosexuality. It's not, you know, man on child, man on dog, or whatever the case may be. It is one thing."
<a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2003-04-23-santorum-excerpt_x.htm" target="_hplink">Associated Press, 2003</a>
On Sodomy, etc..
"Whether it's polygamy, whether it's adultery, whether it's sodomy, all of those things, are antithetical to a healthy, stable, traditional family."
<a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2003-04-23-santorum-excerpt_x.htm" target="_hplink">Associated Press, 2003</a>
On The Government Getting Up In Your Sex Life
"The idea is that the state doesn't have rights to limit individuals' wants and passions -- I disagree with that. I think we absolutely have rights because there are consequences to letting people live out whatever wants or passions they desire. And we're seeing it in our society."
<a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2003-04-23-santorum-excerpt_x.htm" target="_hplink">Associated Press, 2003</a>
On Gay Marriage
"This is an issue just like 9-11 ... We didn't decide we wanted to fight the war on terrorism because we wanted to. It was brought to us. And if not now, when?"
"The battle we're engaged in right now on same-sex marriage, ultimately that is the very foundation of our country, the family, what the family structure is going to look like. I'll die on that hill fighting."
<a href="http://articles.mcall.com/2004-02-25/news/3521981_1_gay-marriage-defense-of-marriage-act-amendment-process" target="_hplink">The Morning Call, 2004</a>
<a href="http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2011/10/19/348059/rick-santorum-pledges-to-die-on-the-hill-fighting-against-same-sex-marriage/" target="_hplink">Think Progress, 2011 </a>
On Being A Hater
"You can say I'm a hater. But I would argue I'm a lover. I'm a lover of traditional families and of the right of children to have a mother and father ... Isn't that the ultimate homeland security, standing up and defending marriage?"
<a href="http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/04197/346633-84.stm" target="_hplink">Pittsburg Post Gazette, 2011</a>
On The Gay Jihad
"So the gay community said, 'He's comparing gay sex to incest and polygamy, how dare he do this,' and they have gone out on a, I would argue, jihad against Rick Santorum since then."
<a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/178543-santorum-gay-community-on-jihad-against-me-for-stance-on-marriage?utm_campaign=briefingroom&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitterfeed" target="_hplink">The Hill, 2011</a>
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First Posted: 12/06/2011 10:14 am Updated: 12/06/2011 9:02 pm