By: Donald V. Watkins
© Copyrighted and Published on February 7, 2020
Pete Buttigieg's stunning victory in Iowa's Democratic Primary this week has exposed a measure of raw hypocrisy within the National Democratic Party.
Informed voters recognize that Buttigieg is super-smart; he is well-versed on domestic and international issues; he is a fiscal conservative and social moderate; and he is a distinguished military veteran. Buttigieg is the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, a city of 100,000. He is young, vibrant, sensible, and an attractive candidate for moderate voters.
Normally, Democrats would be ecstatic to have a presidential candidate with Buttigieg's credentials. However, Party leaders are struggling to hide their private disdain for the fact that Buttigieg is an openly gay man who is devoted to his loving partner.
Buttigieg's sexual orientation is a "problem" for the power-brokers who control the National Democratic Party. They want gay votes, but not a gay man at the top of the Party's national ticket in 2020.
For the record, I respect all people who deserve respect, regardless of their sexual orientation. Also, I was the first non-gay public official in Alabama to address the state's LGBTQI community at its annual gathering in Montgomery in 1981. Additionally, as a lawyer, I represented the LGBTQI community in numerous court cases in the 1980s and 90s when it was not popular to do so. Finally, as Birmingham Mayor Richard Arrington, Jr.'s Special Counsel from 1985 to 1998, I personally imposed and aggressively policed a "zero tolerance" policy that prohibited discrimination of any kind against members of Birmingham's LGBTQI community.
In 2016, Democratic Party leaders used the "Super-delegate" system of party loyalists to steal the nomination from Sen. Bernie Sanders and give it to Hillary Clinton. Afterwards, Clinton was soundly defeated by Donald J. Trump in the Electoral College voting.
If Buttigieg continues to rack up primary election victories, Party leaders will likely steal the nomination from him. They can't handle the thought of a gay man as their presidential nominee.
The Party's hierarchy wants former vice-president Joe Biden as its 2020 presidential nominee, even though Biden is old, tired, and entering the early stages of senility. These Party bosses dislike Bernie Sanders because he is considered a "Democratic socialist" who is backed by liberal feminist and New York City Congresswoman, Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez. They view Sen. Elizabeth Warren as a smart, uncontrollable, arrogant outsider. This makes Warren an "undesirable."
The Party's goal over the next few months is to have a brokered convention in Milwaukee. In the event no candidate has enough delegates to secure the nomination outright, the "Super-delegates" will team with those non-viable candidates who need their campaign debts retired. These groups are expected to broker a deal to deliver the nomination to Hillary Clinton. Even though Clinton is not running in the primaries, she is the Party's "chosen one."
As explained in my February 4, 2020 article titled, "Donald J. Trump: The Invincible President," none of the Democratic candidates can defeat Trump. However, Buttigieg would give Trump one spirited run for the presidency.
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