Buttigieg is poised to secure The Victory Fund’s endorsement. The Victory Fund is a massive LGBTQ+ advocacy group that seeks to aid the careers of LGBTQ+ politicians, and Pete Buttigieg would be their first-ever presidential endorsement in their 28 years of operation. This would offer major support to Buttigieg, who is continuing to gain popularity after taking on Mike Pence. Buttigieg is using the “Christian left” as his niche, as he is an observant Christian. Buttigieg called out Mike Pence stating, “That’s the thing I wish the Mike Pences of the world would understand — that if you’ve got a problem with who I am, your problem is not with me. Your quarrel, sir, is with my creator.”
Beto O’Rourke
Beto O’Rourke, the fresh-faced punk rocker turned presidential candidate, entered the national stage when he ran against the incumbent Texas Senator Ted Cruz. O’Rourke was praised for his progressive stances on issues involving the LGBTQ+ community, which greatly contrasted Cruz. He gained an endorsement from the HRC and a perfect score from them regarding his time in the House. O’Rourke was met with great attention after announcing a presidential run but was bashed for his lack of policy proposals. As his moment in the limelight seems to have ended, he is focusing on releasing numerous policy proposals. His latest proposal (announced June 12, 2019) is all about the LGBTQ+ community.
Beto O’Rourke is looking to dismantle the Trump-era ban of trans soldiers in the military, tackle conversion therapy propaganda through the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), ensure health care for trans people, protect trans women (particularly trans women of color, who face rampant violence), eradicate conversion therapy (a process of which Vice President Mike Pence is an avid supporter), form an LGBT non-discrimination task force, add questions pertaining to the LGBTQ+ community to the highly debated 2020 census, and enact the Equality Act which is currently making its way through Congress. O’Rourke is from the border town of El Paso, Texas and is frequently focused on immigration, with this proposal being no different. O’Rourke proposes increasing protections for LGBT asylum seekers, who often face violence and discrimination within their home countries, as well as caravans, traveling groups, and within ICE custody.
“LGBTQ+ Americans have made incredible progress over the past decade, thanks in large part to the tireless efforts of activists and advocates — but too many LGBTQ+ people still lack protection under many states’ laws and the current administration is encouraging rather than stamping out discrimination,” O’Rourke stated.
Kamala Harris
Kamala Harris is the determined, Snoop Dog loving prosecutor turned Attorney General, turned Californian Senator, turned Presidential candidate. Harris has been struggling to overcome her bleak record as a prosecutor, and the LGBTQ+ community is one of the groups that was not protected under her tenure in the position.
When Harris was California’s attorney general, she refused to defend California’s ban on same-sex marriage, and later officiated at the wedding of the first same-sex wedding after the ruling. Harris insisted that clerks marry same-sex couples seeking a license with “no exceptions.” Harris stood against initiatives such as the unconstitutional “Kill the Gays,” and co-sponsored a bill that removed “gay panic” defense in cases of murder or violent crime against members of the LGBT+. Most recently, Harris sponsored the Equality Act and has used her time in the Senate to question the lack of LGBTQ+ questions on the 2020 census.
Harris’ record with the trans community is somewhat spotty. Harris took strongly positive protective stances for the LGBTQ+ community as Senator but did not do so previous to her election. While Harris did sign briefs that demand transgender people be allowed to use the public restroom that matches their identity, stood in favor of President Obama’s administration’s support of trans students and voted positively in regards to trans issues in the Senate. However, the choices Harris made as a prosecutor mar the positive progress she has made. Harris repeatedly denied trans prisoners healthcare and gender confirmation surgery, sometimes opposing the council of her office in regard to these areas. When confronted in January of 2019 Harris supplied a seemingly weak answer, stating, “I believe that we are at a point where we have got to stop vilifying people based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and we’ve got to understand that when we are talking about a particular transgender community, for too long they have been the subject of bias, and frankly, a lack of understanding about their circumstance and their physical needs in addition to any other needs they have, and it’s about time that we have a better understanding of that.”
