Former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg entered the 2020 presidential race as a virtual unknown. Quickly, his eloquent style and calm demeanor caught on with Democratic primary voters, and a movement was born. In the first two primary contests of the election season, he has shown himself to be a formidable candidate, by placing first in Iowa and then second in New Hampshire — ahead of multiple senators and a former vice president. It’s clear that there is an actual foundation to Buttigieg’s popularity.
Along with being one of the youngest serious candidates to ever run for president, Buttigieg is also the first serious openly gay candidate. To some, this makes him either more, or less, electable. Realistically, it could matter to some voters — but it shouldn’t. It is a candidate’s policy platform, and not his or her sexual orientation, religion, race, or gender on which voting decisions should be based. Unfortunately, it would appear that some in both camps support or oppose Mayor Pete Buttigieg first and foremost because he is gay.
In a viral clip from the Iowa caucuses, a woman who had just voted for Buttigieg discovers his sexual orientation when talking with other caucusgoers. Mere moments before, she had selected him from among the other candidates.
.@PeteButtigieg is gay.
A caucus-goer didn’t know that until after she had chosen to support him. https://t.co/T0WhhaXHkQ
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) February 4, 2020
When this voter realized Buttigieg was married to a man, her shock and disgust spurred her to exclaim, “Are you kidding? Then I don’t want anybody like that in the White House. So, can I have my card back? I never knew that.” It is hard to imagine that anyone observing the 2020 race would not know that Buttigieg is gay. It has not been hidden by the candidate himself or by any of the media coverage, really. But more unexpected than this woman’s obvious ignorance is her refusal to continue supporting a politician just because she disagrees with his private life. Hers is a backward mindset.
But strong reactions to Buttigieg’s sexuality are by no means limited to Democrats.
On Wednesday, conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh, who just received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, discussed the possibility of Buttigieg on the debate stage with President Trump: “A gay guy, 37 years old, loves kissing his husband on debate stages. Can you see Trump have fun with that? And they’re saying, ‘OK, how’s this going to look, 37-year-old gay guy kissing his husband onstage next to Mr. Man Donald Trump?’ What’s going to happen there?”
This focus on Buttigieg’s sexual orientation is not a good look for anyone, whether it’s an Iowa voter or a well-known Republican radio host. It simply should not matter.
Regardless of political leaning, placing a great emphasis on whether a candidate is gay or straight is intellectually lazy, as it really is inconsequential. If Buttigieg were to become president, he would make history as the first openly gay president. But beyond that, the fact that he is gay means nothing next to the substance of his policies. And it’s this substance that is truly disqualifying.
Despite the attempts to pass himself off as a moderate, the mayor is actually almost as far-left as Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. He’s a fake centrist who wraps his radical policies in a rhetorical veneer of moderation.
He wants to eliminate the electoral college, and he believes abortion is actual medical care.@SouthernKeeks says @PeteButtigieg is as radical as the rest of the Democratic candidates.
https://t.co/UczOY0EJHs— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) February 4, 2020
Among other policy positions, Buttigieg supports a pathway via “Medicare for all who want it” that could transition us to fully socialist healthcare in five years, as well as a “Green New Deal” framework. He also says there should be no “restrictions on abortion at any point during a healthy pregnancy” and has an economic plan that includes “free” college for most of the public. This left-wing policy masquerading as centrism is reason enough to not vote for Buttigieg — his sexual orientation needn’t be a factor at all.
Even Trump seemingly agrees. He recently said he would vote for a gay president, basically saying it shouldn’t be a factor. One would hope that this admission means the situation described by Limbaugh, in which Trump would “have fun” on the debate stage at Buttigieg’s expense, isn’t ever going to happen.
No matter his or her party, a candidate’s race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation should not be a factor. Yes, Buttigieg is a gay man, but it is his policies, not his personal life, that should turn conservatives away.
Kimberly Ross (@SouthernKeeks) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog and a columnist at Arc Digital.
