Gibbons' 'childbirth' comments cause a stir on national blogs

Gov. Jim Gibbons' response to a Nevada Appeal photo of him embracing a woman in a parking lot is drawing attention from some national media outlets.

After the Appeal snapped a secret shot last month of Gibbons with his arms around Leslie Durant -- a former Playboy and the ex-wife of a former Reno mayor -- the governor railed against the insinuation that the relationship was sexual.

"What troubles me is all these people speculating every time I bump into somebody that happens to be of the opposite sex," Gibbons told the Las Vegas Sun.

"You can talk to Leslie, but I think she will tell you if (there's something that) takes the romance out of a friendship it’s being there when her child is born. I held her hand when her child was born."

That remark drew the attention of Talking Points Memo, which posted a story about the flap Monday. AOL followed with a story on one of its news blogs Tuesday.