Paul Babeu on Monday said the Mitt
Romney campaign does not have a problem with his sexual orientation.
During an appearance on CNN's The
Situation Room, Babeu told host Wolf Blitzer that he stepped down
on Saturday as a co-chairman of Mitt Romney's Arizona campaign
because of the media attention currently being given to his personal
life.
Babeu is the 43-year-old sheriff of
Pinal County, Arizona who is running to represent the people of the
4th District of Arizona as a Republican. At a press
conference on Saturday, Babeu acknowledged that he is gay while
denying charges that he threatened to have his Mexican national
ex-boyfriend deported.
When Blitzer asked Babeu why he decided
to step down from the Romney campaign if he had done nothing wrong,
Babeu answered, “I didn't want this to splash over on Mitt or any
of the candidates.”
“The allegations or the fact that
you're gay?”
“This controversy. Certainly not
that I'm gay,” Babeu answered. “The Romney campaign, and I don't
think anybody, should have a problem with my personal life and who I
am. It doesn't take away from patriotism or my service. And if you
asked any of the candidates that, I don't think that they would
disagree with that.”
(Related: Paul
Babeu “goes Ron Paul on people” when asked about gay marriage.)