Health Promo 03 (Getty) | Advocate.com
||  News  ||
 
November 19, 2008

Gingrich Back to Divisive Tactics

Former speaker of the House Newt Gingrich characterized Prop. 8 protesters as part of a fascist movement in America during an appearance on The O'Reilly Factor on November 14. Gingrich, who is also a contributor to Fox News, was talking to host Bill O'Reilly about the demonstrations after the election, in which California voters decided to ban same-sex marriage.

"I think there is a gay and secular fascism in this country that wants to impose its will on the rest of us, is prepared to use violence, to use harassment," he said, according to video acquired by Media Matters, a watchdog group. "I think it is prepared to use the government if it can get control of it. I think that it is a very dangerous threat to anybody who believes in traditional religion."

Gingrich said that after Massachusetts opened up marriage to gay couples, the state "basically [drove] the Catholic Church out of running adoption services" because the church would not consider prospective gay parents. (Michelle Garcia, The Advocate)

Reader Comments

These comments are reproduced as written by visitors to this Web site. They have not been edited for content, grammar, or spelling. The viewpoints appearing here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or views of advocate.com, The Advocate, or its affiliates.

  • Name: DDS
    Date posted: 2008-11-20 2:54 PM
    Hometown: Berlin

    Comment:

    Way to go, Newt - I recommend Gingrich & Palin for 2012, a sure winner.....NOT.


  • Name: Ken B
    Date posted: 2008-11-20 11:25 AM
    Hometown: Loksbergen, Belgium

    Comment:

    I must have woken up on another planet....isn't this what the Christian Right have been doing since 1980? At least he is honest that it is a Religious vs Secular issue and the last time I read the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence I thought our founding fathers wanted a secular state and did not want religion dictating politics.


  • Name: David
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 11:42 PM
    Hometown: L.A.

    Comment:

    Perfectly Orwellian Lie -- exactly the opposite of the facts. It's the Religious Right and NeoCons who would like to control the government to impose their "values" on everyone else.


  • Name: Christopher
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 9:49 PM
    Hometown: Phoenix

    Comment:

    Every definition of fascism I've ever seen says right wing and intolerant. Well, Newt knows fascism, He is employing the tactics favored by THE fascist of all time,,,“Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it” (Adolf Hitler)


  • Name: Beau
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 9:00 PM
    Hometown: Los Angeles

    Comment:

    The frightening truth is that Gingrich and his fellow travelers have an audience, that audience listens to their leaders, and those leaders will use their power to hurt and harm others. We can't discount these people as blowhards, crack-pots, or has-beens, and we can't ignore the power of their hatred. The population of California did that earlier this month and the GLBT population lost their civil rights. People saw the power of hate when it was too late to stop it. Left unchecked, Gingrich and his cohorts will continue until gays, lesbians, and all other people they target are stripped of their rights, named as unfit citizens, and dealt with in ways we can't even begin to imagine.


  • Name: Andre
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 7:50 PM
    Hometown: Los Angeles

    Comment:

    Oh now that's tje pot calling the kettle black. How can someone who leaves his ill wife for a younger woman (adultery I think it's called), practically disowns his lesbian sister (or was it she should have disowned him????), and comes just short of Karl Rove in the ethics department, have the nerve to even call any protesting group facists...... Listen, Eye of the Newt, judge not least; ye be judged....


  • Name: Jay
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 5:59 PM
    Hometown: Nashville, TN

    Comment:

    Good ole Newt. He hasn't learned a thing about civility during his long down time. Some Repubs are talking about him being their next presidential candidate in 2012. Keep talking Newt; maybe Palin can be your running mate, too! What a maroon!


  • Name: christian
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 4:42 PM
    Hometown: Atlanta

    Comment:

    Gringrich, Palin, Rush, and O’Reilly are the best things to happen to America and maybe the future of America. Each time they speak, they become even more and more irrelevant to our new diverse population and they bring us more and more center of the road as a nation. It’s important that we continue to hear what they have to say, even if we don’t like it. Because it reminds us all how life would have been had we elected these crazy old men. When conservative columnist floated Gringrich’s name around last week as a possible leader to help the GOP change, not one GOP Governor mentioned his name as a realistic option. Not even his own party thinks he is relevant anymore.


  • Name: Rndmacts
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 4:21 PM
    Hometown: Ottawa, Canada

    Comment:

    Wow, I love when blow hards demonstrate their ignorance, the Newt uses the expression secular fascism to describe the gay movement. Then we move in very exhalted circles, because the men who framed the Declaration of Independence were also secular fascist's. Doesn't the Newt know that secular means of this earth, a non religous aspect, the Declaration of Independance also seperates the aspect of governance from religous interference. And as far as fascist go, the Newt is closer to Mussolini's belief's than any gay person I know. So if Americans wish to listen to someone with a sixth grade education, and follow his lead then your nation is in more trouble than just the economic turmoil that exists today. Oh Yeah, it was his policies which started the current financial problems being experienced.


  • Name: Ted Hayes
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 3:45 PM
    Hometown: Stone Ridge, NY

    Comment:

    He believes in traditional religion and traditional marriage? How many times has he been married? Didn't he allegedly leave a very ill wife for another? "Morality is doing what is right no matter what you have been told. Religion is doing what you have been told no matter what is right." (Author unknown). Wonder where nutsy Newt fits into that statement.


  • Name: Terre
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 3:42 PM
    Hometown: San Luis Obispo

    Comment:

    Larry, you hit the nail square on its head. Let's see if Gingrich's sister disowns the old blowhard for failing to return her support for him all the years she stayed in the closet. The strategy in CA and elsewhere needs to include legal prosecution of the churches that paid for the ads for prop 8. They committed copyright and nonprofit violations among other crimes in commission of their commercials. EXPOSE THE LIES. Many religious followers will be horrified to learn how their leaders lied and will challenge the leadership from within.


  • Name: Nat Michael
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 2:57 PM
    Hometown: Vermont

    Comment:

    Don't you feel SORRY for his sister, Candice? Years back-she didn't come out publicly until HE was in office so as not to HURT HIM! Lovely, compassionate, decent fellow that he is.........


  • Name: Colin Gallagher
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 1:50 PM
    Hometown: San Francisco

    Comment:

    Which traditional religion told Gingrich to serve his ex-wife with the divorce papers in the hospital where she had been treating for cancer? Which traditional religion told him it was OK to have an affair with one of his congressional staff while he was still married? Anything Gingrich has to say on this subject isn't ironic - it's comedy.


  • Name: Steve
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 11:58 AM
    Hometown: Albany

    Comment:

    There is such irony here...coming from chief architect of "Contract with America". I agree with Eric's post--there has LONG been attempts to impose someone elses religious values on others.


  • Name: parker
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 8:00 AM
    Hometown: wichita,ks

    Comment:

    They're most dangerous when in their death throws.


  • Name: Eric
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 7:34 AM
    Hometown: Ferndale

    Comment:

    Well, Newt, I'm exaggerating a bit here for dramatic effect, but I think there is a religious fascism in this country that wants to impose its will on the rest of us (Focus on the Family, American Family Association, Mormons, Catholics, Southern Baptists), is prepared to use violence (Matthew Shepard), to use harassment (picketing funerals of AIDS victims). I think it is prepared to use the government if it can get control of it (right-wing Republicans). I think that it is a very dangerous threat to anybody who believes in the Constitution.


  • Name: john in SF
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 6:57 AM
    Hometown: San Francisco

    Comment:

    The Catholic church should not be working with adoptions, I don't understand why the Catholic church is allowed to work with children at all. Judging by the organization's past behavior, I would propose a bill that would prohibit anyone under 18 in a catholic church without their parent or guardian with them at all times.


  • Name: Brian
    Date posted: 2008-11-19 1:03 AM
    Hometown: Anaheim

    Comment:

    Newt Gingrich should keep his hypocritical mouth shut when it comes to marriage. This loud mouth clown has absolutely no shame. Only Fox news would bring this blowhard in to talk about marriage after his past. What an ass.


  • Name: Larry
    Date posted: 2008-11-18 9:20 PM
    Hometown: NYC

    Comment:

    As long as Republicans exist, they will use us when they can as a means of raising money and creating fear. It's "us" vs. "them". Gingrich is no dummy and knows he is grossly distorting the facts. These statements of his are pure evil. I wonder what his "gay and secular fascist" lesbian sister is going to want to say in response!


Back to top

Submit a comment for this story:

*Type your comment here (Required, 1000 characters max.):

*Name (Required): 

*Hometown (Required): 

*E-mail address: (Required, but will not be displayed)

Is this comment for publication? 
Yes   No

Daytime phone number: (Required for print publication only and will not be displayed)

Please enter the words you see in the box, in order and separated by a space. Doing so helps prevent automated programs from abusing this service.

  

If you would like to submit a comment for posting, please fill out the form above. 

All comments submitted via this form are subject to posting or publication. (To send a private letter to an Advocate editor or writer, please use the e-mail button at the top of the page, or use snail mail.) If you would like your comment considered for publication in The Advocate magazine, please include your full name, your city of residence, and a phone number where you can be reached during business hours so that we can confirm your identity. Your e-mail address and telephone number are strictly confidential and will not be shared or used for any purpose other than to contact you about your comment.

See the Contact page for sending comments for reasons other than responding to Advocate editorial and news stories.

Please note that comments sent by fax or snail mail are unlikely to be posted, although they will be considered for publication along with all letters received via e-mail or via this Web page. Comments that chiefly concern Advocate.com content will be considered for posting only on the Web site. The Advocate reserves the right to edit submitted comments for grammar, spelling, obscenities, or libel; we will, however, do our best to preserve the original comment's style and intent. Comments considered for publication in The Advocate magazine may also be edited for length.

More Exclusives
  • Great American Couple
    In an exclusive excerpt from his new book, Hollywood Bohemians: Transgressive Sexuality and the Selling of the Movieland Dream, Brett L. Abrams explores the relationship between Cary Grant and Randolph Scott, who led homosexual lives right under everyone's nose.
  • Mormons Gone Wild
    After one man undresses missionaries for his calendar, LDS Church–owned Brigham Young University strips him of his degree.
  • Constructive Impatience
    Stung by the Warren decision, GLAAD's former executive director Joan Garry offers the Obama transition team some sage advice.
  • Boxer Goes Trans for Eli Stone
    Often perceived as male by confused casting agents, boxer-body builder turned actor Dallas Malloy felt a deep connection to the trans minister she plays on Eli Stone.
  • Mamma Mia! Rises Again
    Meryl Streep and company managed to top Harry Potter and Titanic at the U.K. box office, and now Mamma Mia! is poised to break similar records on DVD. Director Phyllida Lloyd talked to Advocate.com about bringing one of the biggest musicals of all time to the big screen.
  • The Other White Meat
    As one of the subjects of the documentary about the drag pageant circuit, Pageant, opening in select theaters, and one of the contestants on RuPaul's Drag Race, premiering next month on Logo, Victoria "Porkchop" Parker may not look or act like your typical female impersonator, but make no mistake, she is one of the best.
  • The Religious Defense
    In an excerpt from her new book, Bulletproof Faith: A Spiritual Survival Guide for Gay and Lesbian Christians, author Candace Chellew-Hodge incorporates the wisdom of Xena: Warrior Princess to illustrate her theories as to how gay and lesbian people of faith can protect themselves from those who attack their views.
  • Photo Finish
    Did Prop. 8 backlash cause art censorship -- or its reversal -- at Brigham Young University? Could be, as BYU photography student J. Michael Wiltbank found when his contribution to a two-week-long art exhibition -- eight pairs of benign portraits, each depicting an LGBT-identified BYU student alongside a supportive friend -- had been removed.
  • The Divine Miss M.
    Since the death of performer Wayland Flowers in 1988, his over-the-top puppet creation Madame has been seen only sporadically. But with the launch of her new casino tour, Madame is back.
  • Whither NLGJA?
    The leading professional organization for LGBT journalists is facing a crisis that threatens its very survival. In a changing media landscape and a tough economy, how does a small nonprofit live up to its mission and retain members?
  • The Road to Equality
    Barbara Boxer, the U.S. senator from California, understands why her gay constituents are furious over Rick Warren's role in the inauguration -- it feels like Proposition 8 redux.
  • A Call to Action for Barack Obama
    In the wake of the decision by President-elect Barack Obama to select Reverend Rick Warren to give the invocation at his inauguration, Equality California executive director Geoff Kors calls on Obama to live up to his promise of "One America" and prove he is the ardent supporter of LGBT equality he claims to be.
  • Gays Shut Out of Cabinet
    As if the news of antigay pastor Rick Warren's invitation to deliver Obama's inaugural invocation weren't insulting enough to LGBT Americans, we're now hit with the reality that no openly gay people will be seated at the cabinet table to weigh in on the next antigay flap.
  • Wading Your Way Through Hollywood
    Reichen Lehmkuhl switches hats for his second column and leaves the activist at the door as he offers some sage advice for Hollywood hopefuls. Whether you're gay or straight, what Reichen has to say about "talent" puts the business that is entertainment into perspective.
  • The Better Angels?
    President-elect Barack Obama's choice of Rick Warren to give the invocation at his inauguration puts LGBT Americans on notice: While the next four years hold unprecedented promise for our rights, we may sometimes feel forsaken.
  • Stage Doubt, Screen Doubt
    On Broadway, Doubt -- the story of a steely nun facing off against a heroic priest, whom she fixates on for giving special attention to the school’s only black (effeminate) kid -- worked because of a top notch cast and its unique brand of stylized narrative. If only the excellent Meryl Streep and Viola Davis were enough to make the movie work quite so well.
  • People of the Year: Al Gore, Chad Griffin, and Lawrence King
    This week Advocate.com is going to highlight our remaining People of the Year, who range from activists to entertainers, politicians to students. Today we take a look at environmentalist Al Gore, political strategist Chad Griffin, and slain student Lawrence King.
  • Dame Edna's Fond First Farewell
    As Dame Edna prepares to bid audiences adieu with her First Farewell Tour (take that, Cher), she sits down with Advocate.com to talk about her maybe gay son, Michelle Obama's dresses, and her plans for matrimony in America.
  • Push for 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Review Gains Steam
    In the last week both Gen. Colin Powell and the Joint Chiefs chairman, Adm. Mike Mullen, have gone on record about reviewing the military's gay ban, leading some D.C. insiders to conclude that the incoming administration has put the wheels in motion behind the scenes.