Ben Carson has returned to the issue of gay rights, despite telling Sean Hannity in March that:

I simply have decided I’m not going to really talk about that issue anymore because every time I’m gaining momentum, the political press says, ‘Let’s talk about gay rights.’ And I’m just not going to fall for that anymore.

This past Wednesday, on Fox News’ Special Report, Carson told Bret Baier that he was “a little bit irritated” by the comparisons drawn between the civil rights movement and the gay rights movement. He explained that:

I didn’t remember any times when there were signs up that says, you know, ‘Everybody else here and gay people have to drink at this fountain.’

On CNN, he was asked to elaborate further on his comments on Fox News, and responded:

I don’t really want to talk about the gay issue, except maybe you could get the answer for this question: What position can a person take, who has no animosity toward gay people, but believes in the traditional definition of marriage, that would be acceptable?

He was then asked if he thought that gay Americans faced discrimination, “even if it is not at water fountains.” Carson responded:

I think I’ve made my opinion quite clear on this issue. I think the constitution protects every single American, and everybody has equal rights. Nobody has extra rights.

Joshua Pinho works for American Principles in Action.