Republicans struggle to find right balance between respect for Rob Portman and defending bigotry

Don't look at Paul Ryan. He hasn't even read the thing! Congressional Republicans are not totally sure how to respond to Sen. Rob Portman's announcement that, because of his gay son, he now supports marriage equality. On the one hand, he's one of them, a conservative Republican senator and former George W. Bush budget director. On the other hand, gay marriage. Rep. Paul Ryan, who beat Portman out for the coveted slot of losing vice-presidential candidate, took refuge in the claim of not having read Portman's op-ed. Rep. Steve King was "visibly surprised":

"Wow," he said. "Really."

"I know Rob, of course, and I think a lot of he and his wife. ...I'm one who is a great respecter of him," King said. "And I can tell you, if he came to a conviction like that, then it is a conviction."

Not that King is going to change his opposition to Rob Portman's son ever getting married, of course. Neither is House Speaker John Boehner, though Boehner too affirmed his friendship and respect for Portman while continuing his opposition to Will Portman ever marrying. Then there's Eric Cantor, who said on the one hand that "I think Sen Portman is entitled to his positions, and you know we are a party of diversity and, I think, of respect," but on the other hand, that "As a matter of personal religious conviction I've always believed ... in the traditional marriage between a man and a woman."

Oh, it's a personal religious conviction, is it? Don't you wish that Eric Cantor, House majority leader of "a party of diversity and, I think, of respect" would respect voters enough not to try to make the "personal religious conviction" argument on something that, as a policymaker, he's actively tried to prevent becoming law? But Erick Erickson steps up to treat this issue with the sensitivity that Cantor, Ryan, and King would be showing if Rob Portman wasn't in their club.

"I used to believe that Led Zeppelin was an amazing band, but then I found out my son liked rap, so I changed my views." - Sen. Portman
' @EWErickson via TweetDeck Yeah, it's exactly like that. Perfect analogy, you blithering bigoted idiot.