In Ad, Republican Congressional Candidate Proudly Proclaims He's Gay

Yes, there is such a thing as a gay Republican. There's even such a thing as a gay Republican congressional hopeful.

Carl DeMaio is hoping to unseat Democratic U.S. Rep. Scott Peters to represent San Diego in Washington, and has had to deal with oppositon from within his own party, according to the Huffington Post.

DeMaio will receive campaign support from House Speaker John Boehner despite calls from "social conservative groups" for Boehner to not support DeMaio, the news Web site reported.

Democrats, meanwhile, are trying to label DeMaio as a lunatic fringe conservative with Tea Party ties. DeMaio deftly parried that jab with the 30-second television spot.

"As a proud gay American, I've been called a lot of things in my life," he said. "But a Tea Party extremist? Nothing could be further from the truth."

So far, LGBT groups have stayed away from DeMaio. None of the major political action funds that advocate for gay rights issues have backed him, the Post noted.

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