Republican Chris Christie has rebuked Texas governor Rick Perry, for comparing homosexuality to alcoholism.
Claiming that homosexuality is a choice, Perry had said earlier this week : "Whether or not you feel compelled to follow a particular lifestyle or not, you have the ability to decide not to do that.
"I may have the genetic coding that I'm inclined to be an alcoholic, but I have the desire not to do that, and I look at the homosexual issue the same way."
However, New Jersey governor Christie said at an event yesterday: "I disagree with him, and I don’t believe that’s an apt analogy."
He added: "Every governor and public official has to speak for themselves on these issues... I just spoke for myself."
Christie and Perry are considered potential rivals for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.
Perry was roundly criticized for an anti-gay ad during his failed 2012 campaign , and has also urged the Boy Scouts to keep its ban on gay members.
Last year Christie became the first Republican governor to sign a law banning 'gay cure' therapy for minors , saying: "I believe that exposing children to these health risks without clear evidence of benefits that outweigh these serious risks is not appropriate."
Last week, the Texas Republican Convention actively endorsed gay-to-straight conversion therapy .
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