Kelly Clarkson Supports Ron Paul!

…and people are not taking to kindly to her endorsement. Yesterday, Kelly tweeted her support of Ron Paul by stating:

"I love Ron Paul. I liked him a lot during the last Republican nomination and no one gave him a chance. If he wins the nomination for the Republican party in 2012 he's got my vote. Too bad he probably won't."

This did not go over well with fans and others on Twitter. They also took to Twitter to speak out against Kelly and claimed that she supports a racist and a homophobe.  Kelly quickly tried to clear things up with an apology:

"I am really sorry if I have offended anyone. Obviously that was not my intent. I do not support racism. I support gay rights, straight rights, women's rights, men's rights, white/black/purple/orange rights. I like Ron Paul because he believes in less government and letting the people (all of us) make the decisions and mold our country. That is all. Out of all of the Republican nominees, he's my favorite."

To be honest, she should not have to apologize for anything. She is an American and has the right to support whoever she very well wants to. When did this become a nation of people who only support the “popular” option. She has the right to vote for whoever, even if they are questionable.
On the other hand, this is why political opinions along with religion and other topics should not be publicly discussed. No two people are going to see eye to eye and this just causes much confusion.
I hope this does not affect Kelly in too much of a negative way. She truly is talented and seems sweet. People need to calm down and let the apology end the whole fiasco.

What do you think? Should she have apologized or let her opinion be her opinion?