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Santorum under fire for comments on homosexuality'I have a problem with homosexual acts'
By Sean Loughlin
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Top Democrats and gay rights advocates blasted comments by Sen. Rick Santorum in which he appeared to compare homosexuality to incest, bigamy and adultery, and they called on the Pennsylvania Republican to repudiate the remarks. One prominent Democratic group Tuesday also called on Santorum to resign his leadership post in the Senate. Santorum made the comments in question during an interview with The Associated Press. During that interview, Santorum criticized homosexuality as he discussed a pending Supreme Court case over a sodomy law in Texas. "If the Supreme Court says that you have the right to consensual (gay) 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," Santorum said in the AP interview, which was published Monday. Gay groups were quick to denounce Santorum's comments, the latest in a series of divisive remarks by some lawmakers. "Senator Santorum's remarks are deeply hurtful and play on deep-seated fears that fly in the face of scientific evidence, common sense and basic decency. Clearly, there is no compassion in his conservatism," said Winnie Stachelberg, political director for the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay advocacy group. She called for "quick and decisive action" by Republican leaders to repudiate Santorum's remarks. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee called on Santorum to resign as chairman of the Republican Senate Caucus, the number three position in the GOP leadership. "Senator Santorum's remarks are divisive, hurtful and reckless and are completely out of bounds for someone who is supposed to be a leader in the United States Senate," said Brad Woodhouse, a spokesman for the DSCC. Cites 'misleading' storyIn a statement released Tuesday, Santorum did not dispute the accuracy of the quote, but criticized the AP story as "misleading." His said his comment was specific to the pending Supreme Court case. "I am a firm believer that all are equal under the Constitution," he said. "My comments should not be construed in any way as a statement on individual lifestyles." But, according to unedited excerpts of the taped interview released late Tuesday by The Associated Press, Santorum spoke at length about homosexuality, and he made clear he did not approve of "acts outside of traditional heterosexual relationships." In the April 7 interview, Santorum describes homosexual acts as a threat to society and the family. "I have no problem with homosexuality," Santorum said, according to the AP. "I have a problem with homosexual acts." (Interview excerpts) Democrats weighed in on the earlier remarks throughout the day. Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-South Dakota, said the sentiments expressed by Santorum are "out of step with our country's respect for tolerance." One presidential contender tried to draw the White House into the controversy. "The White House speaks the rhetoric of compassionate conservatism, but they're silent while their chief lieutenants make divisive and hurtful comments that have no place in our politics," said Sen. John Kerry, D-Massachusetts, who is seeking his party's presidential nomination for 2004. White House mumIndeed, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer refused to comment on Santorum's remarks, telling reporters at a briefing Tuesday that he did not know the "context" of the comments and that he had not discussed the matter with President Bush. The White House did weigh in late last year when Sen. Trent Lott appeared to express nostalgia for segregation while paying tribute to Sen. Strom Thurmond, who has since retired. President Bush called Lott's comments "offensive." Under pressure, Lott, R-Mississippi, resigned from his post as Senate majority leader. More recently, Rep. Jim Moran, D-Virginia, stepped down as a Democratic regional whip amid criticism for his comment in March that Jewish leaders were pushing a war with Iraq. In that instance, Fleischer called Moran's comments "shocking" and "wrong." The leading gay Republican group, the Log Cabin Republicans, said Santorum's statement was inadequate, and it called on him to apologize or step down from the leadership post. "If you ask most Americans if they compare gay and lesbian Americans to polygamists and folks who are involved in incest and the other categories he used, I think there are very few folks in the mainstream who would articulate those views," said Patrick Guerriero, executive director of the group. Guerriero said the comments could complicate Bush's efforts to cast the GOP as inclusive. Santorum won some backing for his comments. Concerned Women for America, a conservative interest group in Washington, released a statement criticizing the "gay thought police" and saying Santorum was "exactly right." Genevieve Wood, vice president for communications at the Family Research Council, another conservative group, agreed. "I think the Republican party would do well to follow Senator Santorum if they want to see pro-family voters show up on Election Day," she said. -- CNN Congressional Correspondent Jonathan Karl and Capitol Hill Producer Steve Turnham contributed to this report.
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