Gingrich: Being Gay Is a "Choice" - Did He Choose to be a Douce Bag?

I found Newt Gingrich hard to take even when I was a Republican years ago. Things have not improved in this regard over the intervening years. Especially, given Gingrich's latest bigoted episode of diarrhea of the mouth during which he insisted that gays can choose to be straight just like someone can “choose to be celibate.” Gingrich, of course, ignores all of the legitimate mental health and medical consensus to the contrary as he continues to prostitute himself to the ignorance embracing Christianist/Tea Party base of the GOP in a manner that would embarrass a tawdry whore. He also reiterated that he would work to re-institute DADT. So, my question is: Did Gingrich choose to be a corrupt, lying douche bag? Think Progress has coverage of Gingrich's ignorant statements to the editorial board of the Des Moines Register. Here are highlights followed by a video:

Newt Gingrich told the Des Moines Register’s editorial board this morning that gay people have a “significant range of choice within a genetic pattern” and can choose to be straight just like someone can “choose to be celibate.”

Q: Do you believe that people choose to be gay?

GINGRICH: I believe it’s a combination of genetics and environment. I think both are involved. I think people have many ranges of choices. Part of the question is, do you want a society which has a bias in one direction or another?

Q: So people can then choose one way or another?

GINGRICH: I think people have a significant range of choice within a genetic pattern. I don’t believe in genetic determinism and I don’t think there is any great evidence of genetic determinism. There are propensities. Are you more likely to do this or more likely to do that? But that doesn’t mean it’s definitional.

Q: So a person can then choose to be straight?

GINGRICH: Look, people choose to be celibate. People choose many things in life. You know, there is a bias in favor of non-celibacy. It’s part of how the species recreates. And yet there is a substantial amount of people who choose celibacy as a religious vocation or for other reasons.

Gingrich also reiterated that he would reinstate Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell if elected President and suggested that military commanders have been pressured to accept the policy change. “I think that it would be a career ending conversation,” he said.

What an asshole!!