Romney Caves, Ousts Gay Spokesperson

A couple of weeks ago, when the Mitt Romney campaign hired Richard Grenell as foreign-policy spokesperson, I had two immediate thoughts: 1) man, Romney just keeps digging in deeper with the nutty John Bolton foreign-policy crowd; and 2) man, Romney really had to wait until the nomination was completely wrapped up before hiring an openly gay staffer, huh?

Well, turns out that even with the Republican nomination sewn up, Romney still couldn't hire a gay staffer. According to Jennifer Rubin, Grenell has quit the campaign because of the controversy stirred up by his gayness.

Grenell's statement, obtained by Rubin, thanks "Governor Romney for his belief in me and my abilities and his clear message to me that being openly gay was a non-issue for him and his team."

Being openly gay may have been a non-issue, but stirring up controversy among conservative bigots apparently is a big issue for Romney. 

For anyone wondering how Governor Etch-a-Sketch would actually behave in office, on issues that you suspect he campaigns on but doesn't personally believe, this may be instructive. When he gets a little pressure from the conservative base, Romney quickly kowtows to them.