Hours after an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press where he questioned the hypocrisy of evangelical Christians’ support for Donald Trump, Democratic presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg raised his issue with Mike Pence, according to USA Today .
Taking the stage Sunday at a fundraising brunch for a group that supports LGBTQ candidates, the openly gay mayor of South Bend seemed to examine the faith of Mike Pence, who is strictly opposed to same-sex marriage. Buttigieg married his partner Chasten six months ago in an event, he says, that has changed his life for the better. But he reiterated that he wouldn’t expect people like Mike Pence to understand his situation because of their narrow-minded view of faith.
“That’s the thing that I wish the Mike Pences of the world would understand. That if you have a problem with who I am, your problem is not with me. Your quarrel, sir, is with my creator.”
Buttigieg went on to say that his relationship with God is deeply personal, claiming that keeping faith was a battle that it took him some time to overcome. Recounting his experiences of being a gay man, he said that there was a point of time in his life when he had started to detest his own being.
“It’s hard to face the truth that there were times in my life when, if you had shown me exactly what it was inside me that made me gay. I would have cut it out with a knife,” Buttigieg said.
But his relationship with his partner had since strengthened his faith, Buttigieg admitted.
“That’s the thing that I wish the Mike Pences of the world would understand,” @PeteButtigieg said. “That if you have a problem with who I am, your problem is not with me. Your quarrel, sir, is with my creator.” https://t.co/4DYWPiJspW
— Stephen Peters (@stephenpeters2) April 7, 2019
The South Bend mayor said that he had faith in the American people, in the belief that they were ready to vote for a gay presidential candidate.
“But at the end of the day,” he said, “there is exactly one way to find out for sure.”
Earlier in the day, Buttigieg had questioned the faith of evangelical Christians, many of whom support Donald Trump. Expressing his incredulity at their decision to get behind a man who was caught writing hush money checks to adult film actresses, the South Bend mayor said that he couldn’t believe they would allow Trump to lead the nation.
Early polls show that Democrats are getting behind Buttigieg, who, up until only a month ago, was a relatively obscure figure in national politics. There is little doubt that Buttigieg has a long way to go, but his constant take-downs of the president, his policies, and now even the faith of his vice president are things which might strike a chord with Americans. We can only wait to find out.
Mayor Pete Buttigieg: “So next time a reporter asks me if America is ready for a gay president, I’m going to tell the truth… I trust my fellow Americans, but at the end of the day, there is exactly one way to find out for sure.” pic.twitter.com/NO2sRIIdZr
— The Hill (@thehill) April 8, 2019
