Pete at LGBTQ Victory brunch: I would have cut out whatever made me gay with a knife.

[crazytown]

Pete Buttigieg at the LGBTQ Victory Fund Brunch

If you could have offered me a pill that could make me straight, I would have swallowed it before you could give me a swig of water. It’s a hard thing to think about now. If you had shown me exactly what it was that made me gay, I would have cut it out with a knife.

Thank God there was no pill. Thank God there was no knife.

Here is one comment on YouTube under the video:-

“I am 17 and I just came to terms with who I am in the past year and stopped praying that I was straight. I've never heard anyone describe exactly the process I've went through the way he does. I'm not going to lie it brought me to tears. I've lost my faith along the way; however, Mayor Pete gives me hope that I can find my connection with God again. He's the most intelligent, genuine, and articulate person running and he will definitely have my vote come the primaries.”

[samnsara]

1. hope all these candidates are rewarded with cabinet positions...

..they are all so good!

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

2. I have no doubt Bernie will find a place for Mayor Pete in his administration.

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[crazytown]

3. And I have no doubt he'd accept it

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

4. Yes... Mayor Pete is quickly becoming my #3 choice for POTUS!!

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[IndianaDave]

43. I keep seeing these posts, and I have resisted commenting.

But I find remarks that Bernie or Joe might accept Pete Buttigieg as a cabinet member.

First, it's important to tell you that I recognize that you and I are friends -- committed Democrats. And I respect Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders for their political acumen and experience. I have defended both of these good men against frivolous and often unfounded attacks, and I will continue to do so. But right now, we are involved in the primary process. We do not yet have a nominee. And I am committed to voting for the Democratic Nominee, regardless of who wins the nomination.

But, candidly, I find it condescending to read remarks in which people are looking for some lower level position for the candidate whom I believe should be the next President of the United States.

Let's reverse this for a moment. What if I were writing that President Buttigieg might find Senator Sanders to be useful as Commerce Secretary or, perhaps the Secretary of the Treasury? I don't think you would be comfortable with that. Or that Joe Biden might serve President Buttigieg well as Secretary of State? This would, justifiably, seem presumptuous on my part. And that's my perception of remarks which assume that the primary is over, and Sanders' and Biden supporters are ready to relegate a well-qualified candidate to the status of someone else's cabinet.

I would ask you to keep an open mind and to continue to watch what will happen in the debates and beyond.

Your assumptions about Pete Buttigieg's qualifications as President are under-developed. Because he is so new to the scene, those perceptions lack substance and are misplaced, in my evaluation of our current political reality.

In Sanders and Biden, we have solid, well established leaders. But neither of them has been elected president, yet. Feel free to support them, but please don't jump to conclusions. I believe there are surprises ahead for all of us. And the powerful, electoral magnetism of Pete Buttigieg just might be one of those surprises. Stay tuned.

Best wishes to ALL of our candidates!

[enid602]

55. Dem

Bernie would give trump a cabinet position to snag the presidency. Anything to ensure we elect another populist. I’d prefer to see a dem in the office.

[happybird]

8. I've been thinking the same thing

All of our candidates are impressive and it seems each one has a specific area of expertise or skill. It would be a dream to see them working together.

ETA: Mayor Pete is in my top 3 (along with Biden and Warren), but he is so authentic and such a skillful, spot-on speaker, one who can cut right to the heart of any matter, I can easily see him representing us at the UN. We are going to need to do a lot of damage control with our allies. Pete and Beto would both do well in those sorts of roles, imho. Or as VP, of course!

[trickyguy]

38. Pete certainly would be great as a Cabinet choice but I like seeing him at the UN. Sec. of State?

[dsc]

5. Many LGBT people have gone through the same feelings

I wanted so badly not to be gay that I surely would have taken a pill. Coming out the other side accepting yourself is one of the hardest things a gay person ever does.

[crazytown]

7. Chasten has this tweet pinned to his feed:-

Your time in the closet and your journey to coming out belong to you. You are not required to open healed wounds or write lengthy threads in order to explain your worth to others who aren’t willing to see it themselves. You matter first.

[patricia92243]

58. So mature at such a young age. It will be nice having two adults in the WH.

[Blue_true]

20. I don't know how old you are, but I am a younger babyboomer.

Unless you lived the years that I have seen, you have no idea of how much better things are today. When I was a boy and a teen and even a young man, people that I knew were LGBTQ had to hang together in groups to avoid being beaten badly or even killed.

We as a society still have monumental work ahead of us in regards to LGBTQ rights, but we have also come a long way from where we were. I don't know whether that is any comfort to you, or whether you will see it as the ignorant words of a straight person who has never experienced what you have.

[dsc]

21. 51

Coming out in my era was saying you might well die of AIDS in the near future (I was blessed to not be exposed). But my uncle who was openly gay in the 1950's in high school in a mill town had to have had it worse (he died when I was quite young so I never got to ask). I know we have come far in many respects but in others we haven't.

[YOHABLO]

6. This reeks of self loathing. Hell I am gay and knew it a 5 years old. Loved myself then as now.

Considering Pete is much younger than me, he probably didn't go through half of what many of us did in terms of alienation and stigma. It looks to me like he's done pretty well for himself. His gayness never got in the way of his education nor career. I like him, but don't give the right wingers anything to gloat about.

[crazytown]

9. I've never heard anyone describe exactly the process I've went through

“I am 17 and I just came to terms with who I am in the past year and stopped praying that I was straight. I've never heard anyone describe exactly the process I've went through the way he does. I'm not going to lie it brought me to tears. I've lost my faith along the way; however, Mayor Pete gives me hope that I can find my connection with God again. He's the most intelligent, genuine, and articulate person running and he will definitely have my vote come the primaries.”

YouTube comment. Today.

[dsc]

10. I think that is an extremely unfair take

It should be noted that his husband, who is 8 years younger than he is, left his house after he came out it went so badly. In short, no we haven't solved anti gay prejudice.

[crazytown]

13. One in four pre-teen suicides may be LGBT youth

(Reuters Health) - Youth 12 to 14 years old who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) are much more likely to die by suicide than their heterosexual peers, a disparity that persists but becomes less pronounced by early adulthood, a U.S. study suggests.

While 24 percent of the suicide deaths in the 12 to 14 age group were among LGBT youth in 2013-2015, this dropped to 8 percent of suicides among young adults 25 to 29 years old, researchers report in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-lgbt-suicide/one-in-four-pre-teen-suicides-may-be-lgbt-youth-idUSKCN1QA2JQ

[dsc]

16. I am the adviser of my school's GSA so trust me those stats

are in the back of my mind every day. I also nearly killed myself in college as my attempts at lying about my orientation came crashing about my ears.

[JI7]

17. kids younger than him have committed suicide. it depends on many things

including what kind of support or lack of support they have. everyone will not have the same experience.

[pnwmom]

25. Every person is different. Perhaps you grew up in a supportive environment.

Many people, including my father, did not, and some of them don't come to grips with being gay until their adulthood.

Or even till they've married a woman and had several children.

If there is any "self-loathing" it is because the people around them have taught them that good people aren't gay.

Also, his gayness definitely got in the way of his military career. He COULDN'T be out as gay and remain in the military. That was during the "Don't ask, don't tell" years -- which were enlightened compared to the previous years, when they DID ask, and they separated any military who acknowledged being gay.

[Lazy Daisy]

27. Seriously?

Have you ever been to Indiana? Mike Pence is pretty much the norm. You can't drive a mile of interstate without seeing a billboard about Jesus, abortion, God or Hell.

And you can't say his "gayness" didn't get in the way. You don't know what obstacles he's had to maneuver.

[defacto7]

29. I'm glad your journey wasn't as rough as it is for some.

But you seem pretty angry anyway.

[radical noodle]

35. I'm happy for you

but Pete may have grown up in an entirely different environment than you and acceptance may not have been as easy.

[stevesinpa]

36. and you sound like you reek of jealousy.

"he probably didn't go through half of what many of us did" _probably_ being the key word. you have no clue what he went through in his life. as a gay man, I would think you would be proud and supportive. than you say looks to you that he did well for himself. so that means he didn't have stuggles? he didn't have times when people discriminated against him? because he is a success, somehow his suffering doesn't matter?
think before you speak.

[berni_mccoy]

51. It is his personal truth and experience from youth. It's not up for debate.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

11. Great speech, Mayor Pete!

[localroger]

12. I am a definitely privileged straight white guy

And I love Mayor Pete and the way he expresses his place in the world. I was turned for Obama by the speech he made at Tulane University in New Orleans, and Pete mumblemumblegege has caught my attention this cycle in the same way. We do need a pronouncable way to refer to him, though, and AOC is taken.

[California_Republic]

15. Mayor Pete

Mayor Pete!

Budda judge.

[monmouth4]

18. Butta Judge..n/t

[DoctorJoJo]

23. Jedge, Not Judge!

[USALiberal]

24. Pete has said use Budda-Judge many times......

Buttigieg started the letter with some Hoosier charm, instructing readers how to pronounce his Maltese surname (Butta-judge): “Most people have trouble pronouncing my name, so they just call me ‘Mayor Pete.’”

[DoctorJoJo]

59. Actually, Pete Says Budd-EdgeEdge!

[mr_lebowski]

39. I think it's actually anywhere in between ... when Lawrence O interviewed him, Lawrence was saying

it closer to 'buddha-judge' and Pete didn't correct him, despite Lawrence explicitly asking to be corrected if he's not saying it correctly.

I think it's safe to say anything along the lines of '-jedge' and '-judge' ... Mayor Pete considers 'correct' pronunciation.

[California_Republic]

14. Such a great and confident speaker.

[monmouth4]

19. His wife is eloquent also. He gave a heartfelt, interesting speech and was just delightful. n/t

[pnwmom]

26. Whose wife? n/t

[blur256]

28. Wife?

You mean husband?

[mr_lebowski]

40. Old habits ... dying hard, I guess? (nt)

[babylonsister]

22. That's raw and beautiful that he's a

confident enough man to share that with us. Major props to Mayor Pete!!

[sellitman]

30. He excites me the way Obama did.

I wish him the same success.

[JoeOtterbein]

31. I'm starting to lean towards Mayor Pete for POTUS.

Hard to ignore Smart!

[Susan Calvin]

32. I love you so much Pete based on the little I have seen.

I think you and your husband personally are adorable . But what's with the supporting Bibi? And what's with the not supporting whistleblowers?

[crazytown]

33. Pete is critical of Bibi

https://www.democraticunderground.com/128757699

[Susan Calvin]

45. Really? Good!

I saw something with regard to Israel that I didn't like, and obviously I oversimplified,then. Obviously I need to do more research as well.

[sobenji]

34. Starting to really like Mayor Pete

[crazytown]

37. Showing such vulnerability in public,

knowing it will become of the national conversation. I’m not sure I could do that. Special.

[mr_lebowski]

41. You just know this'll be leveraged by the evil-RWNJ's ... that's the only bummer about this IMHO ...

I'm presuming he's talking about his feelings as a teen or young adult, as opposed to his thoughts as a grown man?

Without actually watching or reading a transcript, I feel confident in saying ... because of course it is!

But the likes of Trumputin/Limbaugh/Faux will selectively edit the comment to make this statement out (at every opportunity) to mean he agonizes over his 'being gay' daily, how this conflicts with his stated religious values (even though it really doesn't ... Jesus as we all know never said a word about homosexuality), how he should probably look into conversion therapy, and how this declaration 'Shows the Country' that he has 'Deep-Seeded Psychological Issues which should Disqualify Him', etc.

[democrank]

42. There's something about this man....

The more I hear him, the more I like him.

[Alien Symphony]

44. Thank you for the post

Thank you for the post, then.

Good post

[Skidmore]

46. As the parent of a daughter

who just came out last year, his speech had me weeping. My daughter married, had for children, but it took her twenty years to deal with a part of herself she hid as a teenager and tried to fulfill as an adult. It saddens me that she felt she had to hide. I love her so, this loving and gifted child of mine. I'm so happy that she is now able to feel free to be herself.

[Celerity]

48. huge hugs, I am so happy that your daughter was able to finally find and express her true inner self

You comment, I admit, has made me tear up a wee bit too.

I love her so, this loving and gifted child of mine. I'm so happy that she is now able to feel free to be herself.

I came out 10 years ago when I was 13, and had the extraordinarily luck to be born into a family that not only 100% accepted me, but had went through the same thing with 2 of my siblings years upon years before I came to that point. We all walk in the footsteps of those who went before.

I cannot imagine the pain of having that conflict churning for so long. All my best thoughts and hopes to you and your family.

[Skidmore]

53. Thank you.

I am just so relieved she is able to sort her life out now.

Happy for you that you found your path and are walking it in sunlight. Best wishes to you on your journey.

[SKKY]

47. I think one advantage Mayor Pete has, that perhaps only Joe Biden would have...

...is that he can walk into blue-collar towns and, through his blue-collar ethos, can talk to those folks in a way many of the candidates just can't. He's Ivy League, but served overseas in the war on terrorism. He's highly educated, but doesn't condescend. He thinks global, but acts local. That's a powerful combination. I'm not coming off of Kamala, but Mayor Pete is legit AF y'all.

[Celerity]

49. +1

I would loooove to see a Kamala/Pete or Pete/Kamala ticket. 2 gifted, intelligent, eloquent speakers that have 'IT'. Two extraordinary human beings. I would add Beto and Stacey Abrams (should she choose to jump into the waters) to that group too. All four project a bold, yet thoughtful future-forward vision, not a turn back the clock mentality comprised of fear, hate, and insecurity like the monster Trump and his fellow army of RW ghouls, dupes, and wilfully ignorant lemmings. New leadership for a brave, better path for us all. We are blessed with an abundance of riches with our primary field so far.

[crazytown]

50. Beto/Stacy would be quite something.

Kamala/Pete or Pete/Kamala - progressive and reassuring at the same time, like Obama.

Some may cry ageism, but historically Democrats have shown a preference to pass the torch to a new generation

Republicans are just the opposite: Ike, Nixon, Reagan, W, Trump - back to the future.

Worth noting: Hillary would have won in 2008, and, IMO, did win in 2016. History is a guide not a map.

[Celerity]

54. Kamala Harris would be the oldest newly elected Democrat since Truman

So there is that, lol.

[crazytown]

56. LOL

Touché.

[marylandblue]

52. This is why he can won despite continuing homophobia

He humanizes the experience, so he is no longer seen as "other."

[patricia92243]

57. This needs to be posted everywhere. People finally learning that being gay is not a choice

is one of the biggest things that has helped people to understand. That, and understanding that gay and child molester are not one and the same.

When my sister was told that my son is gay she was horrified because she honestly thought it meant child molester. We educated her on the subject and the change was immediate.