Nation's Largest LGBT PAC Endorses Mayor Pete Buttigieg

[left-of-center2012]

Three months, millions of donor dollars, and a well-received Democratic primary debate performance later, and the nation’s largest LGBT political action committee is officially satisfied that Buttigieg has met the challenge. On Friday, exactly 50 years after the Stonewall Riots helped ignite the modern gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights movement, the LGBTQ Victory Fund announced that it was endorsing Buttigieg for president, the first presidential endorsement in the organization’s history.

“Every day that Pete is in the race, from the standpoint of an LGBT activist, he transforms American politics,” Annise Parker, president of the Victory Fund and the former mayor of Houston, told The Daily Beast ahead of the announcement. “As long as he is on that debate stage, LGBTQ issues can never be put on the backburner.”

Parker said that the Victory Fund wanted the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, “to show that he deserves to be in the arena.” Asked Friday when Buttigieg had proven his worthiness for an endorsement, Parker said that the mayor’s campaign has crossed every threshold expected of an out gay candidate.

“Whether you’re running for school board or president, you have to prove that you are capable and qualified,” Parker said. “He put together an obviously competent campaign, and once he qualified for the debate stage, that was another checkmark.”

“It’s cool to see that he is being accepted on that debate stage and very much being treated to the same questions, and the same level of scrutiny, that the other candidates are,” Parker said. “The most relevant thing about him is not that he’s an openly gay man… we don’t win by surprising people—we win by demonstrating our competence and competing on the same playing field as everyone else.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/nations-largest-lgbt-pac-endorses-mayor-pete-buttigieg?ref=home1

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. Not only was he accepted on the debate stage,

Every time he spoke, everyone got quiet and listened.

He got respect.

This is huge.

I am very proud of his answers and demeanor last night. I've been listening to his speeches for several months, and he has never failed to impress me.

[democrank]

2. Pete Buttigieg seems to choose his words carefully.

There’s an order to them, a reason for their use. I don’t cringe when he speaks or peek through my fingers anticipating some gaffe roll-out we’ll never live down. I respect him immensely.