New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie shot off a scathing retort Monday to critics who are comparing him to segregationists of the Deep South, calling one opponent a “numbnuts” for distorting Christie’s statement making a comparison on the opportunity of a vote on same-sex marriage to the civil rights era.

As the General Assembly’s Democratic majority is pushing legislation for a same-sex marriage bill, Christie has made a vow to veto, he argued he would rather put the question to voters in November. In so doing, he stated that advocates of same-sex marriage should be happy that voters have the freedom today to make the decision for themselves about such laws.

Christie said after an event in Central Jersey that he would think that people would have been happy to have a referendum on civil rights, rather than fighting and dying in the streets in the South.

For that, Christie was criticized severely by black leaders as well as Assemblyman Reed Gusciora, a white, openly gay Democrat.

Newark Mayor Cory Booker stated that baseball great Jackie Robinson wouldn’t have had the opportunity to break the sport’s color barrier had the matter been put to a vote, and the mayor himself wouldn’t have had the opportunity, years later, to be elected to lead New Jersey’s largest city. Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver stated that many felt the blow of Christie’s comment.

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