In one of the oddest twists of the Republican presidential primary campaign season, Newt Gingrich will attend an event in South Carolina on Thursday with one of the top Democrats in the state.

Having agreed to participate at a rally for the National Association of Home Builders, both Gingrich and House Assistant Democratic Leader James Clyburn, the No. 3 House Democrat who is from South Carolina, are scheduled to appear in front of the Statehouse building in Columbia.

Organizers say the event is aimed at demonstrating strong support for homeownership, which used to be the bedrock of middle-class wealth but is now the biggest single chunk of equity to have fallen out of Americans' pockets. 

They warn that unchecked proposals to try to clean up the housing market will harm the housing market even more.