Author and husband of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Chasten Buttigieg, said Thursday on ABC’s “The View” that Republican lawmakers are going “after extremely vulnerable kids, especially trans kids.”
Referencing former Vice President Mike Pence’s comments about his family, co-host Joy Behar asked, “This is one incident with Pence, but politicians across the country are trying to restrict gay and trans rights, everything from Florida’s so-called ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law to banning drag shows. There’s a war against transgender people. It’s disgusting the way they’re treating these people who are harmless, really. How dangerous a time do you think this is? Is it worse than ever before?”
Buttigieg said, “I think it’s an extremely dangerous time, and it’s a really upsetting time because nothing could be more important than showing up and protecting our families. The way they say they’re showing up for our families, this conversation about giving parents more choice, protecting children, what they’ve really done is, and they have done quite a good job, it been a very well coordinated and well-funded effort to attack the LGBTQ community, specifically with the book bans.”
He continued, “When you look at what many of these things have in common, they’re extremely vulnerable children. You have groups of politicians making calculated choices, maybe because they’re losing some policy arguments, to go after extremely vulnerable kids, especially trans kids. It’s hard enough being in school as it is but to be a transgender kid in school and you have this coordinated effort by people who are going after them because they don’t know what else to talk about. They need an enemy. Right now they’ve decided to make children their enemy. It’s very, very nerve wracking which is why I’m glad, I hope that book gets into hands of kids who are looking up to politicians and wondering ‘Do I have a place in this country, do I belong here?’ My answer to them is, yes, you do. There are millions of people in this country who will fight for you and show up for you.”
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