You know his name and how to pronounce it—or at least you should by now. If you don’t, get with the program! It’s all about that “BOOT-EDGE-EDGE.”
Pete Buttigieg, affectionately known as Mayor Pete, is on a meteoric rise in what could possibly be the most important presidential election of our lifetime. We thought that was the case in 2016 with Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump, but the stakes are astronomically higher in 2020. Can you get higher than astronomical? Well, it’s higher than that.
Buttigieg is attractive, charismatic, witty, down-to-earth and smart as a whip—perfect husband material. He’s multilingual, a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford and a Harvard alumni among other things. His list of credentials is obviously quite impressive to say the least. If The Bachelor was casting a gay lead, he’d be at the top of most producers’ list. Hell, if doing a reality TV show is a precursor to becoming leader of the free world, perhaps he should audition between now and 2020.
Despite the aforementioned positives, however, flash over substance seems to be his biggest nemesis so far—a negative that has the potential to erode his national appeal. Even though it’s still early in the political game, he has faced criticism for not talking enough policy. But the nagging questions remains. Where does Mayor Pete stand on the important issues? How will a President Mayor Pete’s policies steer the United States of America and members of the LGBTQ community out of the current quagmire?
Like every politician during the lead up to a major election, the 37-year-old openly gay mayor of South Bend, Indiana has been making the rounds on the immensely popular late night TV circuit. Jimmy Fallon: Check. Trevor Noah: Check. Stephen Colbert: Check. Seth Meyers: Check.
On a recent appearance on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Mayor Pete revealed a little more on where he stands on three key issues during the Between the Scenes Q&A portion of the show.
LGBTQ Rights: Transgender Inclusion
“The most vulnerable people among the LGBTQ community are Trans women of color who would benefit from more solidarity.”
Foreign Policy: US Credibility
“Specifically, yes I think the Iran Deal is something we should be party to and should strengthen. We didn’t do it as a favor to Iran, we did it to reduce a nuclear threat and it’s still a good policy. The next president’s going to have to do two things very quickly on foreign policy. One: establish a higher bar for when you would consider deploying American forces. Second: establish US credibility in the world because this is a problem. Lives depend on that credibility and restoring that will be very challenging for the next president.”
Economy: Shared Wealth
“To me it’s not just about the top lines of growth. He [Trump] has managed to not tank the Obama recovery for a couple years—good for him. Success looks like shared prosperity where the American dream really is achievable. That uou can be born in any stratum in our economy and come out much higher than you started.”
Mayor Pete finished the Q&A section by stating there will be a lot more to come in terms of policy over the next few months as the Democratic Presidential hopefuls participate in more town halls and begin the debates. But there is also a plethora of information available online about his policies.
According to his Wikipedia page: “Buttigieg describes himself as a progressive and a supporter of democratic capitalism. He favors universal healthcare with retention of private insurance; dialogue and cooperation between the Democratic Party and organized labor; universal background checks for firearms purchases; and environmentalist policies to combat pollution and climate change, which Buttigieg views as a national security threat. He supports subsidizing solar panels and supports the Paris Agreement; after Trump withdrew the United States from the Paris Agreement, Buttigieg was one of many U.S. mayors to sign the Mayors National Climate Action Agenda, pledging that their cities would continue to adhere to the agreement. Buttigieg supports the Equality Act, a proposed bill to extent federal non-discrimination protections to LGBT persons. He opposes the Trump administration’s ban on transgender people serving in the U.S. military. Buttigieg supports the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and federal legislation that would create a pathway to citizenship for undocumented youth brought to the country illegally as children. He supports abortion rights. Buttigieg identifies regulatory capture as a significant problem in American society.”
