Republican presidential candidate Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) and her husband, Marcus, questioned Alfred Kinsey's research on the number of gays in the population Sunday at an Iowa campaign stop.
The Bachmanns warmly greeted Kathy Schnell who was sitting at an Iowa Pizza Ranch restaurant. "I wondered if you would sign my sign?" asked Schnell.
"Gay-friendly Iowan? Okay," said Rep. Bachmann, who signed it.
(Video of the exchange above via CNN.)
"I wonder also if you're aware that 10 percent of the population is gay," said Schnell while Rep. Bachmann signed her sign. "And if you have 28 children, then 2.8 of those kids are very likely gay," she continued as Bachmann greeted someone next to her. "She's not listening," said Schnell to her friend.
"Well, that's according to the Kinsey Report," said Rep. Bachmann.
"Well, 10 percent of the population is gay," she replied.
"That's what the Kinsey Report says," responded Rep. Bachmann. "Your facts are wrong," added Marcus Bachmann. The Bachmanns moved on.
"That's not valid?" said Schnell.
"It's not at all and it's been a myth for many years," replied Mr. Bachmann.
Sex researcher Alfred Kinsey said in 1948 that 10 percent of the men he surveyed -- a population that has been called into question for disproportionately sampling prison inmates and prostitutes -- were "more or less exclusively homosexual."
UCLA Researcher Gary Gates estimated that 1.7 percent of the U.S. population over 18 identified as gay or lesbian, with another 1.8 percent of the population identifying as bisexual. He said that one reason for the higher estimates was that other surveys included people who had sometimes engaged in homosexual acts or simply had same-sex attractions.
At the same appearance, Bachmann faced protesters drawing attention to LGBT teen suicides in her congressional district. In the Anoka-Hennepin school district, nine LGBT sudents have committed suicide, and critics say that the district has allowed bullying to continue and fostered an atmosphere of intolerance. She did not acknowledge the protesters.