Sun. August 14, 2011
Tim Pawlenty, one of a number of anti-gay presidential candidates, is dropping out of the race for the Republican Presidential nomination, according to CNN.
"We needed a boost from Ames that didn't happen," Pawlenty told staff on a conference call Sunday morning.
The announcement follows Pawlenty's disappointing finish in the Iowa straw poll on Saturday. Anti-gay Tea Party candidate Michele Bachmann won the straw poll, which the New York Times calls "hardly a perfect laboratory of democracy."
Pawlenty came under fire earlier this summer for refusing to sign an activists group's pledge to seek a federal constitution amendment outlawing same-sex marriage.
Last week, Pawlenty joined GOP hopefuls Bachmann, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum in signing an anti-gay pledge from the National Organization for Marriage.
Pawlenty, who was desperate for a strong performance in Ames, continued to participate in the anti-gay politics of Bachmann by pushing his Christian values and views on marriage through campaign advertisements.
Related: Michele Bachmann, Tim Pawlenty challenged by gay teen Gabe Aderhold
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