“He was asking to have an open marriage and I refused,” Marianne said. “That is not a marriage.” Marianne claims she was “shocked” at the suggestion, but let’s point out that Newt was having an affair with her while he was still married to wife number one. So her protestations ring a bit hollow. Newt went on to divorce Marianne and marry his FWB.
It’s hard to call Gingrich a hypocrite, because the word just isn’t strong enough to explain the duplicity of what he says compared to what he does. This is, after all, the man who was leading the impeachment charge against Bill Clinton for his tryst with Monica Lewinsky, a young aide, at the same time that he was fooling around with Callista, a young aide. But Gingrich has been such a vociferous supporter of traditional marriage, and it now it turns out he was looking for the type of arrangement that evangelicals believe marriage equality will make commonplace. Of course, the difference between the type of relationship that some gay men are pioneering and the type of relationship that Gingrich had is, well, honesty and a keen sense of mutuality. That was never a plentiful commodity for Newt in any case.
Gingrich has been on a surge in South Carolina among right-wingers who distrust Romney for being a cult-following flip-flopper. The latest news isn’t likely to do him much good. Ironically, Rick Perry withdrew from the race to endorse Gingrich today as “a conservative visionary.” Perry also noted that “Newt is not perfect, but who among us is?”
True, but few could be more imperfect than Newt.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
RS
American politics is like watching Jerry Springer.
Jim
Seems like Newt was trying to redefine marriage.
Storm
Don’t be too hard on Newt. He’s just a victim. A victim of his dick.
Queer Supremacist
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: ban opposite-sex marriage.
How many first ladies would there be under a Gingrich administration? I imagine about three or four.
Cam
Gingrich is lucky that staffers on CAp Hill NEVER EVER complain about their jobs or sue because they are afraid it will effect their lobbying careers later.
Gingrich was sleeping with a staffer, and while he was sleeping her she moved up and up in the office until she was finally promoted to Chief of Staff.
Every single other staffer under sexual harassment laws has a case. If they weren’t sleeping with him and weren’t considered for the promotions she got.
A normal employer would be in trouble for a lot of money for promoting their mistress multiple times up to the equivalent of CEO.
Nick Thiwerspoon
I have nothing against open marriage. A chacun son gout!
But what a HYPOCRITE to be opposed to gay marriage because he wants to preserve “the sanctity of marriage”. And to leave his wife when she gets MS!
What a revolting person.
the crustybastard
It is worth noting that Marianne knew that Newt was having an affair while he was Speaker of the House, sponsoring and overseeing passage of DOMA.
In conservative solidarity, evidently Marianne was willing to let Newt’s rank hypocrisy slide when it might have made a difference for us.
She’s earned whatever misery she’s in. I have no pity for her.
Tom
The guy’s a scumbag. Always has been. Always will be. But let’s not rewrite history on him.
I’m a liberal democrat AND I supported Clinton’s impeachment. People over simplify it by saying it was about having and affair with Lewinsky. It wasn’t. I was about committing perjury by lying under oath about it.
Storm
The better question is – Is Callista a gay man? I mean, that hair is obviously a wig, and who knows what those layers of makeup are hiding.
Chad
Poor Newt, See this is exactly what he said would happen. If we gays start to get married it will pull at the very fabric of marriage. And it happened, we gays have turned his marriage into some jerry springerish affair. SHAME ON US……ugh this man makes me sick to my stomach.
Kurt Foster
What is an FWB?
Eric Auerbach
@Kurt Foster: Friend With Benefits.
Joetx
The fact that such a duplicitous douche bag has any chance, let alone a pretty good one, at becoming POTUS says A LOT about the quality – or rather, lack thereof – of character of many Americans.
Roman
These two devot Catholics are grifters and scumbags.
Cam
Have you seen the narrative coming out of Newts team?
They are…
1. Attacking the TIMING of this. They aren’t denying the affair etc… they are just screaming about how suspicious it is that it is reported on NOW, to try to deflect attention.
Gee, what a shock, his numbers are surging, how SURPRISING he is getting reported on.
And Also,
2. The right wing of the party is also swarming around him saying it’s a liberal attack. Let them, the issue isn’t did he have an affair, the issue is, he was pushing for the impeachment of Clinton, WHILE HE WAS ALSO SLEEPING WITH A STAFFER AND PROMOTING HER! IT’s the rank hypocrisy, let the right pretend Newt is a victim, that isn’t going to play with the Independents in the General election.
chuck
I am sure that their local pedophile priest blessed their marriage with gusto. “Let him without sin cast the first stone”. “It’s not what I do, but what I say”.
Ogre Magi
@Roman: Typical christian turds