Thom Hartmann begins an interview with our co-founder Maggie Gallagher by going on the attack. But after Maggie answers all of his questions with conviction and compassion, Hartmann gives up his gotcha line of questioning and concludes by saying he "very much appreciates [her] coming by and having a rational conversation" and they end with shaking hands.

A possible turning point in the interview:

Hartmann: "The work that you [Gallagher] are doing is causing for many of those [gay] people considerable pain and misery in their lives. How do you reconcile that with your notion of yourself? You've talked about your experiences as a single mother. You seem like a compassionate person. It seems to me like a disconnect."

Gallagher: "I guess when people fundamentally disagree about what's good for the country -- I certainly have always tried to make my arguments in ways that are respectful of people who disagree, but if you come to me and say 'the fact that you think marriage matters because children need a mom and a dad is deeply painful to me' -- all I can say is I'm sorry..."

Hartman: "...Not about what you're thinking, about your activism."

Gallagher: "...I'm acting on that [belief that marriage is good]. Because I think it's really important. When people say that's causing me a lot of pain all I can say is I'm really sorry, that's not my intention, but I think America is a country where we have to go out and fight for what we think is right and good, and we have to do so in a way that demonstrates respect to others and that's certainly what I've tried to do during my eight years in the gay marriage fight."

Watch the whole interview: