Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg on Saturday walked back his criticism of LGBTQ media, saying he was having a “grumpy moment” when he complained about being lectured on how to be gay.
Mr. Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, came under fire from the LGBTQ community last week after he said on “The Clay Cane Show” that he “can’t even read the LGBT media anymore, because it’s all, ‘He’s too gay, not gay enough, wrong kind of gay.’”
Mr. Buttigieg, who would be the first openly gay president if elected, later blamed the comment on a “grumpy moment” and expressed his appreciation for the “work that’s being done in the queer media right now.”
“I appreciate the question and the chance to clear this up,” the mayor said on Buzzfeed’s “AM2DM.”
“Just to be clear: LGBTQ media plays an increasingly important role, especially at a time like this,” he said. “I had a grumpy moment where I was thinking about some of the coverage that I do get frustrated with that seems to tell people how to be gay. And that’s, to be fair, happening in a lot of different sources and places online and in others and it’s one reason why, as a candidate, it’s healthy just not to read too many clips about yourself to begin with. But I don’t want to take away from the very important work that’s being done in the queer media right now.”
Mr. Buttigieg is currently polling at 6.2%, according to the Real Clear Politics national average.
