Buttigieg Making Waves - Is Public Ready To Vote For A Gay?

The Mayor of South Bend (Indiana) is Pete Buttigieg. He is also a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020. He started his campaign as an unknown with very little support, but after making campaign stops and appearing on various cable news programs he is starting to make some waves among Democratic voters.

Why? Because he is, as some have called him, the perfect anti-Trump. He is decent, intelligent, moral, likable, a veteran, speaks multiple languages, and has an excellent grasp of the issues facing this country. He is everything that Trump is not.

He is also gay, and very happily married to his same-sex partner. I honestly don't think that matters to most Democrats. They just want the best possible candidate that can beat Trump. But the real question is -- Has the American public grown up enough to vote for a gay to be their president?

Happily, the answer seems to be YES. As the chart below shows, about 68% of the general public say they would be enthusiastic or comfortable voting for a gay or lesbian candidate. Only 30% said they would be uncomfortable or have reservations.

I suspect that 30% are Republicans anyway (members of Trump's bigoted base), and wouldn't vote for any Democrat (gay or not).

I have not decided who I will support and vote for next year in the Democratic primary. But I like Pete Buttigieg, and he is one of the candidates I am giving serious consideration. I urge other Democrats to do the same.

The chart below reflects the results of the NBC News / Wall Street Journal Poll -- done between February 24th and 27th of a national sample of 900 adults, and has a margin of error of 3.27 points.

Rick Perry Is Not Gay !

For quite a while now there's been a rumor floating around Texas that Rick Perry might be gay. Most of us have avoided writing much about the accusation because there was no one who would come right out and make the charge or provide any proof. That has now changed. Austin's Glen Maxey, the first openly gay person elected to the Texas legislature, has written a book about his search to find out the truth about Rick Perry. The book is titled Head Figure Head: The Search For The Hidden Life Of Rick Perry.


So what did Mr. Maxey find out? He says that Rick Perry is not gay -- he just likes to have sex with men. From the blog of the inimitable Juanita Jean (Owner of the world's most dangerous beauty salon, inc.) we find this quote from Mr. Maxey:

Throughout this story, I’ve been careful to refer to Perry’s activities as homosexual or same-sex, never “gay.” That’s because as far as I’m concerned, Rick Perry isn’t gay. He’s a man who has sexual encounters with other men. Those men predominantly identify themselves as gay. But Rick Perry is not, as far as I am concerned, gay.

Being gay is much more than just sex. Being gay is having an emotional relationship with a member of the same sex.

I'm sure that gays all over the state of Texas are now breathing a sigh of relief. They have plenty enough problems without being saddled with the likes of Rick Perry. I do have to wonder though how this is going to play to teabagger fundamentalist voters in Iowa and other states. Somehow, I don't think they'll understand the difference between being gay and just enjoying sex with other men.

Mr. Maxey's book is now available on Kindle for the very reasonable price of $9.99. For those of you, like myself, who don't have a Kindle reader, the paperback version should be out in about a week. It should make for some interesting reading.

Did Kay's Web Site Say Rick's Gay ?

Oh my, is next year's governor's race already heading for the gutter -- at least for the Republicans? That's what some Perry supporters think. They believe Hutchison's supporters are accusing the governor of being gay!

Thhe charge springs from a column by Garner Selby in the Austin American-Statesman. Selby took a close look at one of Kay Bailey Hutchison's campaign web sites (standbykay.com, and no I'm not linking to a Republican site -- find it on your own if you must). Selby says the site contains about 2,200 phrases that help direct readers to the site when used in a search engine. A couple of the phrases include the words "rick perry gay".

Hutchison’s campaign spokesman, Jeff Sadosky, said he didn't know how the phrases got on the site, but they would be removed. He said, “We did not know these offensive word associations were being searched for by hundreds of thousands of Texans everyday nor do we condone the computer-generated existence on our Web site. They will be removed promptly.”

But Perry's campaign manager, Mark Miner, is having none of it. He said, "This deliberately offensive act is not the result of staff error; it is the result of a negative and divisive tone set by the candidate herself. Sen. Hutchison has undertaken a dirty, slash-and-burn campaign since January by putting out at least six attack mail pieces against Gov. Perry, countless negative press releases and now this outrageous, slanderous tactic on her website. A campaign’s behavior is a reflection of the candidate and Sen. Hutchison should take personal responsibility for these actions. This type of nasty attack may work in Washington DC, but it has no place in Texas. Sen. Hutchison should be ashamed and embarrassed.”

There do seem to be some aspects of Perry's personality that are open to question. He was a "yell leader" while at Texas A and M University (that's a "cheerleader" anywhere else). He also is inordinately proud of his hair and how it looks (hence the nickname "Gov. Goodhair), and frankly, seems to be a bit of a wuss. None of those things actually proves he is gay (but if he is, I'm betting he's a "bottom").

There is one group that I believe is owed a big apology -- Texas gays. This is quite an insult to them to infer Rick Perry might be one of them!