LGBT Groups Want Pete Buttigieg to Be More Than the 'Gay Candidate for President'

[Eugene]

Source: Daily Beast

LGBT Groups Want Pete Buttigieg to Be More Than the ‘Gay Candidate for President’

LGBT political movers and shakers were thrilled when Pete Buttigieg won a spot on the debate stage—but say he has to keep impressing them if he wants to earn formal support.

Scott Bixby
03.21.19 4:03 AM ET

As an out Midwestern mayor whose résumé boasts both a Harvard diploma and a deployment to Afghanistan, Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg had no problem gaining the notice of LGBT politicos. After making history as the first gay candidate to qualify for a major-party primary debate, however, he has won their full attention.

By crossing the 65,000-donor threshold imposed by the Democratic National Committee for candidates who hope to participate in the first two primary debates, Buttigieg crashed through what one gay Democratic coordinator called the “rainbow ceiling,” and his campaign is actively courting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Democrats to join his growing base of support. But with a primary field as expansive—and almost uniformly pro-LGBT—as the party’s crop of 2020 hopefuls, LGBT political movers and shakers told The Daily Beast that Buttigieg has to do more than win a spot on the main stage to start earning their formal support.

“We are blessed on the Democratic side with a plethora of candidates that are great on our issues, and have a great history on our issues,” said Rod Townsend, president of the Stonewall Democratic Club of New York City, who called issues like supporting marriage equality, non-discrimination legislation and LGBT military enlistment “a given in Democratic circles.”

“It’s not 2008, it’s not 2012, where it’s, ‘oh, you support marriage equality,’” Townsend said, which makes the hurdle for potential endorsement from the nation’s largest LGBT Democratic organizations a lot higher.

“We want him to show that he deserves to be in the arena, and have no doubt that he will,” said Annise Parker, president of the LGBTQ Victory Fund and herself an out former mayor. “We’re excited about his candidacy—it’s clear that he’s ready for primetime.”

-snip-

Read more: https://www.thedailybeast.com/2020-presidential-race-lgbt-groups-want-pete-buttigieg-to-be-more-than-the-gay-candidate

[babylonsister]

1. Maybe because I'm not gay,

but the very first thing I see is intelligence, integrity, wit and humor. I think it's easy to forget he's gay.

[Tipperary]

4. I really do not see it as an issue that one has to "forget" actually.

He is exceptionally smart, handles himself well, and he seems to be ready for prime time. His sexuality is a non-issue. And I am gay.

[babylonsister]

5. That's what I meant; his sexuality is a

non-issue to me, but some LGBT groups don't seem to agree. I guess people will grouse about anything.

[Tipperary]

7. True dat.

I cannot believe they would have any doubts about him. I’m really leaning toward him at this time. I watched the town hall and then saw him on Morning Joe. Very impressed. Morning Joe folks were raving about him this morning.

[Vinca]

6. Me, too. And I can't think of a time I've seen him where anyone has mentioned it.

It's hard to imagine why anyone would care about his or anyone else's sexual orientation in the first place. You want a very intelligent, well educated, well spoken and easy to like candidate and that's Mayor Pete.

[OhZone]

8. Well, I'm lesbian -

and I'm really impressed with him. I see what you see. His sexual preference is irrelevant.

I'm still leaning old guard Uncle Joe right now though.

But any of our Dem Candidates are great.

[Me.]

2. OFGS

What is wrong with people. Has everyone forgotten 2012 when certain voters wanted to be wooed? How well did that turn out for us? He's a wonderful candidate and if he gets the nom who else are they going to vote for? If they want him as the candidate they need to get behind him now, help him, don't challenge him.

[Bettie]

3. The article doesn't really say

what the people saying this actually want from him.

I think he's great. Smart, accomplished, and extremely well-spoken.

It is a primary. Each individual makes their own choice.