i'm warming up to Mayor Pete as VP but wonder if his sexual orientation will hurt or help?

[brush]

[Thekaspervote]

1. Sadly.. IMHO it would hurt 😞

[The Mouth]

2. The *ONLY* people who will give a crap

are people who would never vote for a Democrat.

And PISS on aany and all homophobes regardless of party or any other distinguishing factor, we don't need that trash.

[True Dough]

6. Amen!

We've had a black president (the best POTUS in my lifetime). We should have a woman president (she won the popular vote but Russian interference kept her out of the White House).

It's 2019. The majority of the electorate will be able to look past Pete's sexual orientation.

[pangaia]

8. good point.. may or may not be 100% true,, how would I know,,

but it is something to consider.

i like him also.. doesn;t sound like a politician. is very aware of himself, unlike almost all the others,,in both instances...
he brain just works differently....

It is interesting WHY certain people run for such a high office...

There must be a tremendous ego and a huge emotional attachment to the prospect..to think one is capable of being president... almost a enough to disqualify a person....
But for whatever reason, I do not feel that about Pete....

Can he win the GE? I have no idea. But I sure would be happy with him in the oval office.... he would be a superb leader.....

[hlthe2b]

12. That's what I think... Same people who won't vote for a woman or anyone not white.

[rampartc]

13. i think this is correct

they think we are all communists. a homosexual won't lose a single vote.

[demmiblue]

14. +1

Reminds me of the people who questioned President Obama's run for presidency based on race.

Fuck them (one disparager here actually has LGBTQ children... how fucked up is that?).

[Indygram]

16. I think it's a lot more complicated than that

I don't give a flying fart who someone loves, marries or what they do in their bedroom. Under normal circumstances I would not even think twice IF the candidate were the most qualified and best suited for the position.

In regards to this particular race...I just can't support Buttigieg as a candidate for either role this time. First, he has no national level experience in elected office, so I don't feel like he has enough experience in politics yet.

Second, and most importantly, we have the pied piper of the hate mongers we will be running against. It's bad enough that there are a substantial amount of right wing religious zealots who already vote. What is TERRIFYING to me (and should be to all of us) is that these zealots are breeding like goddamned rabbits, indoctrinating/brainwashing their offspring at a very young age. Most of these people don't bother voting, thank God. Nothing will guarantee that they all DO vote faster than their Pied Piper of Hate, who has ZERO decency, riling them up by telling them if they don't vote for him then a same sex couple will move into the white house. Because Trump is SO DISGUSTING he will INTENTIONALLY use bigotry to rile up hatred towards the LGBTQ+ community. I have loved ones in that community that I do NOT want to become targets of potential hate crimes. This is why I can't support his candidacy THIS time.

Beating Trump is just too important to take that kind of risk, imo.

[IphengeniaBlumgarten]

18. Its likely he will be offered a position in the next Democratic administration.

A Cabinet position, maybe. Seems like he might also be good as UN Ambassador, with all those languages.

[rzemanfl]

67. Gotta wash socks. BBL. n/t

[Garrett78]

22. Buttigieg would do fine as POTUS, much less VPOTUS.

He'd surround himself with smart and experienced people.

Mayor Pete, to his credit, is the only one I've heard make the point that we desperately need major structural reform. The US Senate, for instance, is an absolute joke. It's utterly anti-democratic.

[Indygram]

40. I disagree

He really needs to serve either in a national elected office or at least governor first.

[Garrett78]

55. I'm not saying he's going to become POTUS. There's virtually no chance that he will.

But, if he were to become POTUS, his administration would do about as well as any other Democratic administration.

[cwydro]

51. Wow.

Smh.

[dem4decades]

39. Really? What if black voters don't warm to him? They vote Democratic.

[Funtatlaguy]

58. I heard this conversation with some black Dems at the liberal

social group Drinking Liberally.
We were discussing debates and different candidates.
When Pete’s name came up, two African Americans said that they had noticed that Pete has next to no support in polling.
They said there’s a good reason for that.
They said that culturally, especially in black churches, that gays are still not fully embraced and neither is gay marriage.
They said that with straight black males that Pete would get a lot of resistance.

[kacekwl]

63. How ironic is that.

[not_the_one]

77. I had been thinking this may be the case...

It just goes to show that all segments of society can practice blatant, baseless discrimination, while at the same time bemoaning themselves as being persecuted...

Screw the bigoted black men. They will also be the same who see women as their "bitches". If the women and young can convinced, we would still come out way ahead.

If the black political leaders, and the black churches can be brought on board, we could still do this. They carry a huge influence in the black community.

I think there have been enough young blacks that have come out as gay to help convince the younger generation. Black women, who are more accepting of gay and lesbians, can help bring along most of the rest of the black men.

But above all, there needs to be counter programing to, and by, the black churches. At least until church opinion is relegated to the trash bin, where it belongs. If they start quoting the bible, tell them to read Ephesians 6:5, where slaves are admonished to obey their earthly masters, just like they would Christ.

If the black community can't get behind the core values of the party, they need to understand that there are consequences.

The Democratic party is more than the black community. Yet we are being perceived as, basically, allowing them to pick our leaders for us. We feel that the democratic ticket must include a woman and/or a black, preferably both. That is an admirable hope, but the right person must be selected for reasons in addition to gender and race.

It is always depressing when someone demands "my way, or I sit at home", and we win anyway... It makes they one making the demands almost irrelevant.

WE are counting on:

Democrats, women, young, LGBTQ, Hispanics, Blacks

They are counting on:

Bigots, fundies, racists

Overall, IF PEOPLE BOTHER TO VOTE, I think we will have the blue tsunami that we are hoping for.

And if you don't come to the party and do your part, it will be noticed.

Nobody likes feeling irrelevant.

[marybourg]

79. I don't think that's either fair or true:

"Screw the bigoted black men. They will also be the same who see women as their "bitches". If the women and young can convinced, we would still come out way ahead".

[zackymilly]

85. When Hillary was running in 2016,

I was shocked to hear some black co-workers say they would never vote for a woman, even if she was a Democrat.
After the election, I found out that most of them decided not to vote at all.

[Autumn]

64. Homophobia is unacceptable, as is antisemitism. If they don't warm to him should he

be the nominee they will either vote for him or not. Their choice. They only POC that I know that are homophobic and antisemitic are the older ones and that comes from their beliefs in their religions.

[dem4decades]

72. Let's beat Trump first with a candidate that all Democrats want to support then move on and

enlighten those that need to change.

.

[Autumn]

73. There are some who won't be enlightened and they aren't going to change.

Having older POC in my family I know this for a fact.

[The Mouth]

74. If we won't tolerate, and condemn racists then we shouldn't tolerate, and should

publically condemn and scorn homophobes. No matter what race they are.

We need to GET IN THE FACE of people would condemn one, but not the other.

[Oneironaut]

68. There are actually lots of bigoted Democrats, sadly.

It’s much less than Republicans, but they’re still there.

[The Mouth]

75. If we could win with an African American person

we can win with a gay person.

Homophobes should be called out, humiliated, ridiculed, and made to feel as utterly un-American, even if they are POC, as those POC would want to see blatant racists thusly treated.

[Shrek]

3. I hope it's neither

Because that would mean he's being evaluated solely on his merits.

[gulliver]

4. Imagining him up against Pence, I'm feeling like it helps.

First, Buttigieg would trounce him on both style and substance. Second, Pence's obvious hang-ups would not compare well with Buttigieg's comfort in his own skin.

[brush]

9. Ordering popcorn now. I'd pay to see that debate pairing.

[pangaia]

10. pence is emotionally distubed and shoul;d seem help

i do NOT say they tongue in cheek or lightly...

her is sick.. and, of course, he is not the only one

[The Mouth]

82. That's unfair to the emotionally disturbed.

He's just a dick. The mistake people make is conflating his bizarre religiosity and quirky demeanor for lack of intelligence; he's a keen strategist, no dummy. Remember we got our asses kicked by the Original Nazis until we stopped underestimating them

Goering, Goebbels, Speer, bright motherfuckers, just evil. Pence is, I think more like that than actually dysfunctional, indeed maybe even possessing a sociopathy that helps a political career.

[pangaia]

84. I underestand what you mean,, and I do not disagree.

BUT-- in my view, people with his so-called views and behavior ARE in fact emotionally disturbed.

[Surrogate]

33. Be Honest

Does anyone really believe that the republicans will show up for debates?

They'll be too busy with whatever crisis they've conjured up to deal with what they'll deem to be petty bickerings of democrats.

[BootinUp]

42. Very good points there. Nt

[Funtatlaguy]

5. There are many closet homophobes out there.

They only talk about it when they think only like minded people are around...similar to racism.

[cwydro]

56. You are so right.

And apparently there are some here.

They’ve outed themselves pretty clearly.

[SouthernProgressive]

11. He offers almost nothing as a V.P.

He needs to carve out his own niche. He is in a tough state to do that. Possibly the DNC.

[samnsara]

15. im thinking it wont make any difference...

[pamdb]

17. mayor pete

I really like Mayor Pete, but I think if a white male like, oh, I don't know, Joe Biden gets the nomination, he will have to pick a a woman for a running mate. Personally, I don't care, but I
really think the Biden Kamala Harris is the best match. And then, in 8 or 4 years, it could be Biden and Mayor Pete. But you cannot have 2 white men. Not where there is a black woman and d
a black man available.

[rzemanfl]

65. Gotta wash socks. BBL

[LiberalFighter]

19. Hard to say.

[jberryhill]

26. Who was the last cabinet officer elected president later?

[HerbChestnut]

21. Not supporting Pete because he's gay only reinforces anti-lbtq mentalities.

If you like where he stands on the issues then support him. Nothing else should matter.

[GulfCoast66]

23. Depends who heads the ticket.

If it Biden then Harris is the obvious choice in my book.

And of course assuming one of our candidates will be VP could be totally off base.

[jberryhill]

24. I think he's already taken, so the answer is "neither"

I don’t know what sort of a chance you had with him, but I don’t think he’s looking.

So, his orientation doesn’t really make a difference.

[brush]

29. WTH? It's a legitimate question IMO. It has nothing to do with availability.

[jberryhill]

30. Oh, well maybe you should be more specific

You didn’t say what it is that you wondered whether it hurts or helps.

[brush]

31. Re-read the OP.

[jberryhill]

34. To which my reaction is "Hurt or help what?"

Will it matter to your parents if you brought him home to meet them?

I dunno. Whether it will hurt you or help you kinda depends on what you had in mind, I guess.

I get it. You’re warming up to him and starting to wonder where the relationship is going. But whether his orientation is going to hurt or help depends on where you want this relationship to go, I suppose.

[brush]

35. I'm surprised. You've never seemed to have a comprehension problem.

It's one sentence that asks very clearly what may hurt or help.

[jberryhill]

36. The Constitutional role of the VP is to preside over the Senate

So, as it is obvious that presiding over the Senate has nothing to do with orientation, then you certainly must be wondering whether it hurts or helps something else.

Sometimes people are not as clear in their meaning as they assume they are.

[brush]

37. If it's not clear to you, let's drop it.

[mr_lebowski]

59. JBH is just f'ing with you, man/ma'am ... is it really not obvious?

Maybe I'm one of few around here who pretty much always gets his odd sense of humor ... being a smartass myself I'm sure has something to do with it.

[brush]

69. I hope that's it, a sense of humor and not a loss of sense.

Whatever it is it's very odd. I mean discussing serious issues and someone injects nonsense—once I detect that I have to disengage. Don't have time for it.

[cwydro]

52. Lol, Thank you.

Well done.

[jberryhill]

87. You are most welcome

[yardwork]

66. .....

[FreeState]

25. This question kind of pisses me off - I don't think its valid.

If it wasn't coming from a place of bias it would match the amount of concern of Biden's age - but it doesn't. (And I fully realize there are members of my community that ask it as well, just a big pet peeve of mine).

https://news.gallup.com/poll/254120/less-half-vote-socialist-president.aspx

[brush]

28. Not coming from bias.

I for one disregarded the mayor at first but after listening and watching what he has to say and has proposed, as I posted, I've warmed up to him.

No reason to be pissed off. It's a question many have on their minds.

[cwydro]

54. Sad to read this here.

Shame.

[brush]

70. Meaning?

[LakeArenal]

27. I think he'd be great.

Especially on the international stage.

Love his style and presence.

[The empressof all]

32. I really like a Warren/Pete ticket....

We can always speculate about the negatives for any candidate. But I would like to vote MY values and not worry so much about what naysayers or bigots think they want. We need to lead and not follow every speculative string laid in front of us. That's how we get all tangled up in over thinking. In addition to his sober and critical thinking skills he is a strong fund raiser and can bring a great deal to expressing the "heart" of Democratic Values.

[bucolic_frolic]

38. We are in no danger of picking a mayor for VP

Pete's turn will come, if intelligence is still important if Trump leaves office.

[BootinUp]

41. I think the answer depends on the whole package.

Pete is not just a gay mayor.

[customerserviceguy]

43. The only people who would consider it

will never vote for a Democratic candidate, anyway.

[Indygram]

44. It's not just about who will or not vote for him because of it

It's also about how many people who don't usually vote will be motivated to come out to vote against him because of it. Anyone who doesn't think Trump would rile up his hate mongers by saying that if evangelicals don't vote for him a same sex couple will be sleeping together in the White House isn't thinking about the cause and effect of who gets nominated.

[customerserviceguy]

45. Trump's going to do that anyway

He'll demonize anyone we nominate with the fundies. All he's got to do is mention abortion, and they'll crawl over broken glass shards to vote for him. They know they can trust him because of Gorsuch and Kavanaugh.

So, we should pick who we want to lead us, without worrying about what the dickheads think.

[Indygram]

48. Not sure how familiar you are with evangelicals, but I used to go to one of those churches

So I personally know how these people think. The majority don't like abortion but it doesn't work most of them up to make them freak out. You know what did freak many of them out...trans bathroom issue, don't ask don't tell, same sex marriage and adoption. I think a lot of the reason these issues are so triggering for evangelicals is because deep down they fear that if their children see a same sex couple in a prominent role that it will make their kids gay or something. It's totally irrational but a very real trigger in their minds.

[customerserviceguy]

57. I've seen my share of fundies

I do know that the middle aged and older ones are freaked out about gay and lesbian people, but I still think that the fundies already have plenty of incentive to get to the polls next year.

We can try to game them, or we can just do the right thing.

[mopinko]

46. well, imho, it is why he is raising so much money.

i know more than a few lgbt folks here in chi who are digging deep.
we have an active gay donor class in chi, and they have brought us some truly wonderful reps. my own state rep, who was the lead on marriage equality was also a lead on legal mj.

so, on the help side, that is a seasoned and successful group w a winning track record.

[myohmy2]

47. interesting...

...and if he should become President would his partner become 'First Lady'?

...'First Gentleman'?...'First Partner'?

...some might feel the First Lady job should go to a woman...maybe Pete's Mother if she's around?...his Sister if he has one?...Aunt?

...many will not vote for Pete simply because he's gay...but I think that number is small and growing smaller by the day...

...to me, Pete seems very smart and articulate and that in the final analysis is what will count...

...but like Grandma said to me the other day, "He doesn't look gay."

...and I agreed...

[Demsrule86]

49. Hurt...SADLY.

[cwydro]

50. Ugh.

No comment to seeing posts like these here.

[aeromanKC]

53. Harris/Buttigieg is my #2 favorite ticket

Checks many boxes!! And both can beat Trump in most polls in their own right.

[treestar]

60. Getting out the vote in the swing states

and it should not be a problem. Sexism might have hurt Hillary there; the polls were good, so we did not think of it enough. Now we know not to take any of those states for granted.

[Mike Nelson]

61. I don't think it will hurt...

… the two biggest vote-getters for President are Black (Obama) and Female (Hillary). Even a White Nationalist Con-man can get elected... so, I think anyone can win. Of course, the Deplorables won't vote for Pete - but he loses no potential votes from that group.

[kacekwl]

62. It's a shame in this day and age you

would even consider this. Listen to what he says to his ideas . I hate the will being too old hurt, will being a woman hurt, will being black hurt, will being too young hurt . I guess it's still for anyone who would ask this only OK for a middle-aged white man to be the standard for president.

[brush]

71. Come back to the real world. People ask questions like that.

[kacekwl]

81. Yes they do.

Instead of asking, what's your position regarding forgien policy, climate change, healthcare, and so on.

[brush]

83. You're welcome to start a thread on any of those however we here at left-leaning...

non-homophobic DU can discuss whether a gay candidate on the ticket will hurt or help us rid the nation of trump. You have to know as well as I do that much of the rest of the Dem electorate doesn't hold the same views as we do here, not to mention the independents and maybe never-trumper repugs who we will need votes from to defeat trump.

This is a discussion board and deciding on the best ticket to beat trump is the most important issue now.

[Turbineguy]

76. It would be nice to get somebody

who's smart in charge.

Instead of somebody who's steal.

[comradebillyboy]

78. It certainly won't help.

[Downtown Hound]

80. I would be cool with that

But in my opinion, a Biden/Harris ticket would be unbeatable.

[Politicub]

86. Mayor Pete will electrify the electorate. His voters will

vastly outnumber the homophobes and bigots. If anything, the fact that Buttigieg is gay is a net positive. He will attract younger and new voters. He raised more money than anyone in the last quarter. Plus, Chasten .

There’s a lot of tacit and unconscious bias against gay people everywhere, including DU. I reject the idea that African Americans will reject him. It is an act of bias to suggest it.

Do not be afraid of change.