2020 Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg’s husband, Chasten, argued that Vice President Mike Pence can still be homophobic even if he is friendly with people who are gay.
Chasten Buttigieg’s comments came in response to White House deputy press secretary Judd Deere claiming that Pence and his wife, Karen, having lunch with the openly gay prime minister of Ireland proves the vice president is not anti-gay.
On Monday, Deere tweeted a screenshot of Pence’s upcoming schedule: “For all of you who still think our @VP is anti-gay, I point you to his and the @SecondLady’s schedule tomorrow where they will join Taoiseach @LeoVaradkar and his partner Dr. Matthew Barrett for lunch in Ireland.”
Chasten Buttigieg, 30, a teacher, replied, “I’ve sat at tables with people who would gladly deny me the right to marry, who openly support conversion therapy, and who adamantly believe being gay is a choice. Doesn’t mean they’re any less homophobic because we shared a meal.”
I’ve sat at tables with people who would gladly deny me the right to marry, who openly support conversion therapy, and who adamantly believe being gay is a choice. Doesn’t mean they’re any less homophobic because we shared a meal. https://t.co/cECWvnFUUV
— Chasten Buttigieg (@Chas10Buttigieg) September 3, 2019
Pence hosted Leo Varadkar and his partner, Matthew Barrett, at the Naval Observatory, where the vice president lives, when they visited Washington, D.C., in March. Varadkar told Irish reporters after their visit that Pence told him that the pair “would be very welcome to visit their home in [the] future.” The two have been a couple since 2015.
Pete Buttigieg, 37, mayor of South Bend, Indiana, married Chasten Glezman in 2018, months before he launched his 2020 presidential campaign. The pair have been critical of Pence’s record on gay issues.
Buttigieg said in May that Pence has “always been polite” to him in person but said his policy stances are discriminatory against people who are gay.
As governor of Indiana, Pence supported a bill that would have added an amendment banning same-sex marriage to the state’s constitution. He also signed a controversial religious freedom law that critics said would allow businesses to discriminate against people who are gay.
