Ok, so these are the political times of swamp creatures rising, an unindicted co-conspiratorial prez, and a White House so unmoored aides swipe destructive orders from Trump’s desk before he can sign them.
Which makes us dream of a return to ethical, competent leadership that a gay man can truly bring.
A lot of names have been thrown around as the top contenders to beat Trump in 2020 – Joe Biden, Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, and Kirsten Gillibrand are some of the ones that have gotten the most attention.
But what if the person to win back the White House for the Democrats is…
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
Haven’t heard of him? Well, news outlets like Politico have reported that he’s planning to make a run. Barack Obama called him one of the four most promising leaders for the future of the Democratic Party and recently met with him to discuss a possible campaign.
And the New York Times in 2016 published an op-ed on him with the title “First Gay President?”
Here are 8 reasons why the mayor of South Bend, Indiana could be the savior that we’re all looking for.
1. He’s gay
After the white supremacist, misogynistic bigot that is Donald Trump, people want more diversity in our next Commander-in-Chief. We just had our first African-American prez, who turned out to be popular even with many suburban white voters, so why not our first gay one? After all, recent polls show that a large majority of Americans would be willing to vote for an openly gay candidate, and it would help him make the argument for change as the ultimate outsider.
2. He’s married
Not only would he be the first gay President, but we would have a First Gentleman for the first time in our nation’s history. This would contrast nicely with the cheating, “grab ’em by the pussy” prez. Chasten Glezman, a 29-year school teacher, met Pete on the gay dating app Hinge a few years back. They got married a few months ago and have gotten coverage all over the media for their incredibly adorable wedding photos. I mean come on, look, how cute are they?
3. He’s a millennial
When Barack Obama became President, we felt like our country had taken a step forward with a new generation of leadership. With Trump, it feels like we’ve taken a step back in time on issues ranging from green energy (coal, really) to the vital contributions of trans servicemembers. It’s time to move forward once again with a leader who understands the country as it is now, not the way it used to be when Ed Koch was mayor of New York City. Buttigieg, at 36, would be by far the youngest in the crop of candidates and the youngest President in U.S. history (Theodore Roosevelt, at 41, holds the current record).
4. He’s a military veteran
Four years ago today, I boarded a plane, after intense training on how to use this thing in a war zone.
Arms like this have no business in civilian hands.
None. #VeteransForGunReform pic.twitter.com/6tBXXsnubf
— Pete Buttigieg (@PeteButtigieg) March 25, 2018
Some may say that he doesn’t have the experience to lead the armed forces, but Buttigieg understands far better than Donald Trump (five-time draft dodger) the experience and sacrifice of our troops. Pete was deployed to Afghanistan as an intelligence officer for seven months and is still a lieutenant in the Naval Reserve.
5. He’s the mayor of a major city in a region Democrats lost in 2016
With Congress and most state legislatures in gridlock these days, cities are the hubs of innovation where the real progress is taking place, especially on the coasts. But since becoming Mayor in 2012, Pete has turned South Bend around the made it one of the most dynamic cities in the Midwest, rivaling blue-state metro areas. Plus, coming from a state and area that Trump won big in the last election, he might be able to win back the voters we need in states like Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.
6. He’s smart
After this current President where his current and former aides, both publicly and privately, have been musing about whether or not he is mentally deteriorated, it would be nice to once again have someone in the Oval Office who represents the best and brightest of our country. Before entering politics, Pete was a graduate of Harvard University and a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford.
7. He’s a true man of faith
He’s a Christian- he and Chasten were married in the Episcopal Church in South Bend- but he doesn’t hit people over the head with it as many politicians do. He’s sincere, quiet and pragmatic about it, a nice contrast to the phony, insincere, bloviating fraud that is Trump. Pete would bring ethics, honesty, and integrity back to the White House.
8. He has a first dog named Truman
Truman has his own Twitter profile, of course.
Black Pegasus
#6. “He’s smart”
^^ This is the only reason he or anyone else should be considered for higher office. Everything else mentioned is a bunch of bullshtt identity politics.
Xzamilloh
Thank you. This was annoying to read
Zambos271
Very hard to read. Why did he keep writing “prez”? It was so annoying. The writer sounds like a vapid, shallow airhead. The whole time I was reading I kept hearing a Kardashian voice.
JED08
If you think about that statement, that you only need to be smart to be considered for higher office, it’s overly simplistic and not true. But yes, you were able to get a bitchy statement out.
tham
I loooove that scene in 30 Dark Zero…
“She’s smart”
“Fuck you, we’re all smart, is she someone We can trust?”
Mattster
There’s a lot more to being a good leader, or even more, a good person, than just being smart.
Goebbels was smart. So was Ted Bundy. Would you want either of them as president?
Kangol
Pete Buttigieg’s politics are in sync with where many Americans are, but I’d be curious to see if he could win a statewide election in his home state of Indiana first. Indiana did vote for Barack Obama in 2008, and it elected Democrat Joe Donnelly to the US Senate in 2012, but it has traditionally been one of the most conservative Midwestern states, foisting its horrible former governor Mike Pence on the US two years ago, so I wonder whether its voters would elect him or not if he ran for the governor’s seat in 2020, or Republican Todd Young’s US Senate seat in 2022.
Also, james duke mason writes that “We just had our first African-American prez, who turned out to be popular even with many suburban white voters, so why not our first gay one? ” Barack Obama won his Illinois US Senate seat with 70% of the state vote, including in every one of the major suburban counties around Chicago and outside of St. Louis. He won the presidency in 2008 with over 9 million more popular votes than John McCain, and again in 2012 with 4.9 million more popular votes than Mitt Romney (Trump lost to Hillary Clinton by nearly 3 million more votes). In fact, Barack Obama received more votes than any other presidential candidate in history in each of his elections; Hillary Clinton ranks second with her 2016 vote total. So yes, more than a few “suburban white voters” voted for Barack Obama. Twice.
Billy Budd
Sadly, I cannot see it happening. The world is not ready yet for this.
MikeE
“The world” is ready for it, as a matter of fact, it’s already a reality in several countries.
The United States isn’t ready for it.
Let’s at least be precise with our language.
queerty02
Not one of those reasons was convincing to me. Wow! Get a grip Queerty!
MikeE
I’m actually surprised they didn’t post a bunch of pics of him in a bathing suit and gush about his being hot. That’s more up Queerty’s alley.
Mack
The Evangelicals would shit a brick. This country does need new blood, and I’m a 71 year old saying it. I love Joe Biden, but too old at this point. We need someone to move this country forward instead of backwards as Trump is doing.
tham
The Evangelicals support Trump…they have no moral authority.
They sold their god to tax cuts to the rich. Who really cares when they dropped from 33% to 22% in one year.
When you sell your soul to the devil…you lose that whole “god” angle.
Xzamilloh
Could you give us more insight on his politics? His stances on healthcare, money in politics, tax reform, education? This felt like huge insult to my intelligence and that of your readers who don’t care one bit about a person being gay or straight when it comes to representation.
MacAdvisor
I am sure Buttigieg has a good career ahead of him, but a short stint as mayor isn’t going to get him the buzz for a Presidential run. Have him get elected governor or US Senator, then let’s talk.
Paco
I look forward to seeing what he accomplishes in the future.
Zambos271
Me, too
lkeels
In other words, wait until he’s old enough that it doesn’t matter at all. WE NEED YOUNG PEOPLE IN OFFICE NOW, NOT LATER.
Paco
I’m not voting for someone simply because they are young, gay and attractive. If Queerty is serious about pushing this guy to be President, then they need to start listing serious reasons why anyone should vote for him.
Hussain-TheCanadian
Why is Joe Biden and Kamala Harris mentioned but not Bernie Sanders?
Where is Biden anyway? I dont see him standing up to Amazon and Walmart; where is he when it comes to universal healthcare? Every gay american should be pushing for universal health care, good housing, good jobs, and strong pro-gay legislation.
Heywood Jablowme
I can guess how Pete’s dog got his name:
“If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.” – Harry Truman
This also explains why Trump doesn’t have any friends!
MaxTaste
Bigots will never vote for a gay man and our country is full of bigots.
misterjack
I would say his military duty and experience as mayor are the only important qualities. If he is as smart as the article says, he will try for a Congress/Senate seat or governor position before running for POTUS.
Kangol
Great points about the lack of political substance in this article; I can’t post the link, but you can Google to see what Buttigieg’s politics are (moderate Democratic, with social progressivism). The article raises an interesting question, though, which one of the historical buffs on here might be able to answer: has anyone ever been elevated from mayor of a city directly to the US presidency? The US routes are governorship to the presidency; US Senator to the presidency; US House representative to the presidency; or leader of a major public organization. Calvin Coolidge and Grover Cleveland were both mayors, but later became governors before being becoming president.
MaxTaste
I’d vote for him. He’s as good as any of our other choices.
rray63
I’m sorry, how can anyone take an article seriously when the first two things are, he’s gay and he’s married? Why don’t we find an black, Jewish, female, married to her female lover. That’s the ultimate in PC, right? I shouldn’t have to say this but given our community these days I will, that was an example, not my belief.
Candidates for President truly need to be someone that has everyone’s ideals in mind, not the 27% of liberal Dem.’s, nor the 28% of right wing Rep.’s. How about we go down the middle and find common ground? I know that’s not what a lot of people want to hear but I’ve believed for years that the answers are in the middle. The moderate conservatives will never go for the more outrageous far left ideals and vice versa.
isn’t it time we find someone that ca incorporate the best ideas of both parties? I don’t care what color, sex, orientation or any other label you have, just pick someone that will truly represent ideals that we can all agree on. Believe me, this person, DOES EXIST. The problem is that we all care about what we care about and don’t want to hear what anyone else says. Am I generalizing, yes. In this forum it’s easier to generalize than to get into to many specifics.
Maybe I’m an idealist, if so it’s a “label” I don’t mind being saddled with. So are you some of you going to call me horrible names? Are some of you going to say, yeah, maybe that’s not a bad idea. Let me know, it’s become the biggest problem we have faced in our lives. And this one certainly makes going to war in WWII seem simple by comparison. (No, not slight intended to the greatest generation).
Love you all, truly! Peace.
Xzamilloh
Nope… I’m good. Democrats tried “moderate” and it got us over a thousand legislative seats lost under Obama and fake compromise and civility crap that they use as an excuse to not get anything done for their base. When the majority of citizens agree that medicare for all is the way to go, what is the middle ground?
Turn off the victimhood when talking on here, because it sounds like you want to be some kind of martyr when truthfully, you just have an opinion on here like everyone else. What answers are in the middle? Give me ONE answer that lies in the middle that would be agreeable, and I’ll show you bought and paid for politician that does the bidding of their donors, not the people.
garyrj
He’s intelligent, he knows how to get things down. He works with people, he’s grounded. And he’s Gay. He’s at the top of my list.