McCain Manager: Perez Hilton's Miss USA Move 'Counterproductive' for Gay Rights

In an interview yesterday on the Hugh Hewitt radio show, former John McCain campaign manager Steve Schmidt -- who recently advocated gay marriage in a speech to the Log Cabin Republicans -- noted that openly gay gossip blogger Perez Hilton's criticism of Miss California has actually hurt the cause of gay rights:

"I think it's counterproductive to the cause of people who are concerned about equality for gays, because many people that are sympathetic to the cause that will be turned off by a closed-minded attitude being directed, as you said, you know, in Miss California's instance."

In a related story, Miss California, Carrie Prejean, recently noted that Perez Hilton needs Jesus.

When asked for his 2012 GOP nominee predictions, Schmidt mentioned, "Governor Romney, Governor Huntsman. I think Newt Gingrich ..."

Schmidt also went on to say that he believed the Sarah Palin interviews conducted by Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric were fair, but described the Couric interview as, "the most consequential interview from a negative perspective that a candidate for national office has gone through, not since Roger Mudd interviewed Ten Kennedy in the late 1970s."

As you may recall, Mudd's question -- "Senator, why do you want to be president?"-- and Kennedy's rambling answer -- effectively ended his presidential ambitions.